Disgaea: When Worlds Collide
by Crossover King 46
Summary: When Adell is sent to a new Netherworld to become its Overlord, he decides he needs vassals. It just so happens that his first one he gets is the prankster we all know and love... A crossover with Disgaea.
1. Chapter 1: The New Netherworld

Disgaea: When Worlds Collide  
By Random Writer 46

* * *

Chapter 1  
The New Netherworld

* * *

_"What did you call me here for?" asked the red-haired man as he looked about the rooms of the castle. Formerly owned by the fake Overlord Zenon, it had been given over to Rozalin upon his death and then shunted onto Tink when Rozalin had rejected living in such a place for a peaceful life in Holt Village. Today was a bit of an occasion, as rarely did Rozalin ever come back to this place, much less call him along. He shifted on his feet nervously, although he would never admit it._

_Rozalin turned to look at him, her crystal red eyes sparkling. His heart couldn't help but warm a little at that look, although the relationship between them was very strange right now. After that kiss two years back that had turned her away from murdering all of them, their relationship had gone on the same as usual, although there was awkwardness here and there._

_"Look," she gestured towards the basin of water in front of her. The Four-Leaf Clover, emblem of the true Overlord Zenon, glimmered on the surface of the water. Doubtlessly she was using her abilities as Overlord of this world. "There's been a change in a nearby universe! A new Netherworld just… appeared out of nowhere!"_

_"What?! Why?" asked Adell, surprised and a little apprehensive. He remembered the last time demons from other universes decided to invade; he had been rendered completely ineffectual against their blinding power. If it did happen again… Well, this time it'd be different. He'd been training nonstop since they had defeated the fake Zenon, and although he still couldn't hold a candle to Rozalin when she took off the kiddie gloves, he had become a more capable fighter overall._

_Rozalin cupped her chin in thought. Ever since coming to live at Holt Village and stripped of her illusions, she had decided to change her choice of attire. What had been before a luxurious evening gown was now a very simple skirt and halter combo, with a jacket over top._

_"I'm not quite sure… There appears to be a human world; it's been there for a long time. The Netherworld of this universe is definitely new, though," said Rozalin, in thought. She quickly snapped out of it, however. "That's not what I called you here for! I've got a mission for you!"_

_Adell sputtered._

_"Mission? Me? What gives you the right to assign ME a mission?!"_

_"The right as the Overlord of this universe, of course!" smiled a triumphant Rozalin. "And, as a demon, a resident of the Netherworld, of course you have to listen to me, the Overlord!"_

_"I've told you a hundred times, I'm hu—"_

_"Oh, stop it. Are you still sticking with that excuse?" asked Rozalin, turning her head to the side haughtily. Although she had mellowed out a lot compared to when they had first met, that spoiled princess side of hers wasn't gone just yet. Honestly, it was never going to go. It was a part of who she was. "I'm not a demon, blah blah blah. I'm definitely human, since I came from a human family. Oh wait, you're adopted. How do you explain your power and THIS?!"_

_She stepped forward, and, before Adell had a chance to react, pried open his hair. The red-haired boy reacted the moment he realized what had happened, jumping back with a yelp, but it was too late. They both knew that she had seen the pointed ears he constantly hid under his long red bangs._

_"Your ears are pointed!"_

_"No they're not!" Adell fought back defensively. She had accidentally walked in on him showering a couple months ago and had seen what was under his hair. He had always known he was different, the ears of the other children in the village were all round, and so he had taken to growing his hair long and hoping nobody would notice. Not until Rozalin explained it to him did he realize that pointed ears were the sign of demon heritage, although he still denied it. "They're mutations or something! I'm not a demon! I'm human, born and raised!"_

_Rozalin shook her head; obviously tired with the entire ordeal. She had been trying to convince him unsuccessfully for the last couple weeks that he was a demon, and that as a demon it was only proper for him to be her vassal. He had rejected her ideas time and time again, and it really culminated in an epic display of immaturity and denial when he had plugged his ears last week during one of her lectures and started to sing 'White Tiger'._

_Of course, she had given him a beating for that one. Nobody ignored the Overlord just to spout that idiot Dark Hero's theme song at her! Nobody!_

_"Whatever. Just listen," said Rozalin. "I've been thinking."_

_"That's a fir—"_

_"Continue with that sentence and I'll start calling down Rose Liberations on your red-headed butt," said Rozalin, glaring at him fiercely. Adell wasn't cowed, he found the sight more endearing than terrifying. "Anyway, I've been thinking. Although I'm an Overlord, I haven't really been doing much lately for my Netherworld, since I'm living here in the human world."_

_That was basically true. Rozalin had taken to Holt Village like a native, and was now a familiar face within the community. Nobody really noticed or cared that they had the strongest demon in their universe living amongst them. She had taken on the duties of the fake Zenon, using Tink as her intermediary to the Netherworld._

_"There's a bit of an overpopulation crisis in my Netherworld right now," explained Rozalin. "Since my fake disappeared, many of the demons got a little too happy and started procreating, which is a problem since we were already at full capacity before. What we need right now is some new land."_

_Adell's eyes widened in realization._

_"Wait, so you mean…"_

_"Yes," smiled Rozalin. "I need you to take over the new Netherworld, and become its Overlord."_

_Before she had even finished the sentence, Adell had started walking out the door. Gritting her teeth, Rozalin gripped him by the arm and dragged him back to where they had been standing before._

_"Look, listen to—"_

_"Nuh-uh, no way!" cried Adell as he tried getting the pampered princess to loosen her grip. Ever since she had unlocked her powers as the true Overlord Zenon, she had become many times stronger than him. It was really unfair, but so was life. "I'm a human! Humans can't become Overlords, and don't want to become Overlords! Ask Tink or something, or maybe one of your apprentices! Not me!"_

_"—Would you listen for a second!?" asked Rozalin, finally losing her temper and smashing her red-headed companion on the head with the butt of her gun, the Noble Rose. Although it wasn't the most powerful gun they had gotten their hands on during their adventures, it was the one that spoke out the most to her. Since then it had become her signature weapon of sorts. "Look, you battle maniac! Tink can't go because he's the middleman in my dealing with this Netherworld, and I can't trust my vassals since they're so weak! You're the best option!"_

_"No way! I don't want to go!"_

_"Stop acting like a petulant child!" cried Rozalin, pistol-whipping him once more. Adell let out a yelp and clutched at his head; ever since she had unlocked her powers, she had gotten STRONGER too. Enough to bruise him with a flick now, which motivated him even more when training. "Look, you'll be able to fight a lot of battles in this new Netherworld, alright?! Lots of tough enemies, strong ones! Not to mention all the powers you would enjoy as an Over—"_

_"Wait. Battles, you say?"_

_Rozalin smacked her forehead. Yes, of course. This stupid idiot would ignore all the rights and privileges he would get as an Overlord as well as all the sights and new things he would come across in his travels in a new land for the mere thrill of the fight. That was Adell alright. Why hadn't she tried this tactic in the first place?_

_"Yes, battles. Plenty of them, I'm sure," said Rozalin._

_"But you said that this Netherworld is new," said Adell. "How can there be any tough enemies already? It's gotta be some sort of uninhabited wasteland."_

_Rozalin nodded._

_"It is, more or less," said Rozalin. "It's a newly formed Netherworld, and it lacks demons right now. But, since it is a new Netherworld and provides plenty of easy-to-obtain land, other Overlords and Demon Lords will definitely try to invade and take it for themselves, like I want you to do. That means you're going to be clashing against all kinds of strong foes, alright? Are you happy?"_

_Adell thought about it. Although the thing about becoming the Overlord was a pain, and something he really didn't want to go through, the thought of battling against strong enemies like that Overlord Laharl and that Demon Lord (er, Beauty Queen) Etna again really intrigued him. He looked down at his hands; it'd also be a good way to ascertain how far he had come since his training._

_"You sure?"_

_"Positive," smiled Rozalin. He had taken the bait, and she was reeling him in. He'd be in her clutches real soon now… Now all she had to do was finish him off. "Once you become Overlord, I'm sure that plenty of people will notice your abilities and start challenging you. In fact… I'm sure the fights will NEVER end."_

_The red-headed Demon Hunter's head swung upwards, and Rozalin could see the flames burning from within those black orbs he called eyes. Every fiber of his being was dedicated to the thought of imminent battles, and Rozalin could only sigh. A battle maniac indeed… Too bad he never slowed down to take a look at what else he had._

_"Alright, just tell me when!" grinned Adell, already thinking of the things he would need to pack. Oh, his parents had no problem with him going out to fight in another Netherworld, they always said it was high-time he moved out anyway (the only reason he didn't was because Holt Village had no vacancies). He'd bring his old Hustle Gloves; he had neglected to upgrade his equipment, why fix what wasn't broken? "I need to run home and pack, just give me a message when you're ready for me, alright?"_

_"WAIT!"_

_Just before he ran out the doorway, however, Rozalin stopped him once again, grabbing his arm. He looked at her, slightly confused, before a soft feeling washed over his skin._

_She had given him a kiss on the cheek._

_"Don't die on me, alright?" requested the blushing princess as she broke away, her eyes facing the wall. "Make sure you eat plenty, and drink a lot of water too. If you find yourself in trouble, send a message. If things… get too dangerous, get out of there."_

_Then, as though she was biting them out, more words flew out of her mouth._

_"Your life… is worth more to me than some land."_

_Adell smiled. The warm feeling that had enveloped him before did not stop, not until it reached the very core of his being. Although he knew that he had been conned into taking up this mission, he really didn't regret it. Not after this._

_"…Sure," said the red-headed Demon Hunter. "I'll be sure to come back safe. Don't worry, alright? You'll get bags under your—"_

_"Get out already!"_

_A chair was thrown across the room._

_"Going, going!"_

* * *

Which lead to the current situation of him being surrounded on all sides by unfamiliar demons, grinned Adell. Any other person would've been cursing his fate by now, but Adell was no ordinary person. He was a Demon Hunter; he lived for the fight. He was also a battle maniac, Rozalin's endearing nickname for him.

Two headless knights, and three zombies. They would've been easy to take, had it not been for the two spirits behind them. The knights would attack with their swords physically, and the zombies would annoy him with their constant puking and twirling, all while the spirits cast ice spells at him. If there was one thing he hated, it was ice spells.

"CRIMSON FLAME!"

Dodging a sword swipe from a nearby knight with a back-flip, he landed and quickly charged forwards, his hands ignited in a holy blaze. Driving the fist into the stomach of the armor, or what would've been the stomach had there been a person within, he used the momentum to launch the headless knight into a nearby wall, shattering the metal and making sure that the monster wouldn't be getting up again. The red-headed Demon Hunter nimbly ducked under another attack, this time executed by a zombie, and dealt several powerful blows to the monster's gut, causing it to throw up… its lungs? Ew.

They were fighting in what seemed to be ruins of some sort of castle, noted Adell. It had been only three months since this Netherworld had been created, according to Rozalin, and only half-a-day since he had arrived; which meant that said castle must've been raised and destroyed within the space of ninety days. An Overlord contender was sure to have gone down with the castle, especially considering the excessive damages to some of the debris that he had seen while fighting.

Quickly, he dispatched two zombies by engulfing them in flames, before shattering their burning bodies with well-placed kicks to the weak points of the body, which left only one headless knight, one zombie, and two spirits.

He looked at the spirit impaled on his arm morbidly.

Make that one spirit.

"GIGA ICE!"

Dodging the ice spell, he flipped over what seemed to be the remains of a wall. The headless knight that tried to follow him found a burning leg placed within its gut, and exploded into burning pieces of metal as the force of the kick hit a structurally weak point in its armor. The zombie that had been following behind it found its body impaled with said burning pieces of metal, and quickly hit the ground rolling in agony. Adell ended its misery with a well-placed soccer kick, decapitating the zombie and striking the last spirit with the head in the same smooth move.

Without giving the spirit time to get out of its daze, Adell quickly closed the distance and dealt a piercing blow to the spirit's chest, impaling it upon his arm. The creature made a strangled noise, before slumping over and bursting into flames.

Adell sighed. It was finished.

Still, that didn't really satisfy his urge for battle. The enemies had been too easy… Not quite at the same level as the Overlords and Demon Lords he had fought before. He needed something of a higher class, more intelligent. Monsters were all and fine, but they fought like monsters, brash and unthinking; not at all like humanoid enemies.

Well, before he went out searching for battle, there was something he needed to do. From his pack, he retrieved a red cell-phone with flame decals at the side. The design was something that Tink had come up with, and although tacky he kind of liked it. He dialed in a number, and surveyed the area with a critical eye.

"Hello?" came a voice from the other end.

"Rozalin, I've arrived."

"Adell? You were supposed to call me as soon as you arrived, not half-a-day after!"

"What? But you were the one who said to call you once I've found a place with a good foundation!"

"Call me twice, you idiot! Did you turn off your phone? I've been trying to reach you for hours!"

"Well, I'm sorry, princess," said Adell. "But I've been involved in a fight for my life, you know. I think making phone calls is secondary to fending off ice spells aimed at my head."

"Urrrgh!"

"Anyways, I've found a good place," said Adell, deciding to ignore the earlier parts of their conversation. It was something they were used to, it was their thing. Argue for half a day and then completely forget about it later. It was one of the things that hadn't changed since he had met her. "I don't know if it's what you're looking for, but… Well, it looks solid enough to build on."

"Send me a picture, I'll decide."

"How?"

"Do you not know how to use a cell-phone?" asked Rozalin, exasperated. "Look, just put take the cell-phone, and point the other end at the location. Press the camera button, it's the one that looks like a little camera, and when the picture shows up on your screen select 'send', then select my name from the list of contacts. It's not that hard, Adell."

"Sorry, princess, not all of us are as technology-savvy as you…"

"What century do you live in, Adell?" cried Rozalin. "It's a cell-phone, for Baal's sake! It's not a supercomputer; all you have to do is press a few buttons and there's even an instruction manual! I'm supposed to be the sheltered one! Battle maniac!"

"Whatever! I'm sending the picture now."

"Wait, give me a second," said Rozalin. "Yes, I've got it on my end. This looks like a ruined castle of some sort. It seems like the fighting's going pretty fast over on your side."

"Tell me about it," said Adell. "As soon as I set out I get into a fight, and it's with weaklings too. Just my luck."

"Well, the foundation seems good. It doesn't seem too ruined… I could see electricity and water pipes there, and they don't seem that badly ruined. It'll take a bit of fixing, but it's better than building from scratch," noted Rozalin. "Good, just settle down there for a bit. I'll send a Prinny work crew over as soon as I can get Taro to gather a few up."

"Still using the ones that Etna lent you, huh?"

"Oh, shush. She never said she wanted them back, and they're so useful. Twenty hour work days, meals consisting of only lettuce and porridge, seven days a week and no holidays for the entire year. It's like a supply of penguin slaves! Well, except you have to pay them. Two Hell a day."

Humans that had committed serious crimes during their lifetime were turned into Prinnies upon death and sent to Netherworlds and Celestia to work off their hours. He had long ago resolved to live a sin-less life after being exposed to the conditions that Prinnies had to go through to gain redemption and the possibility of transmigration.

Long ago being the moment he met THAT Beauty Queen.

Adell shuddered.

* * *

"Shut up, you idiots! None of you can do something this horrible, but I can!" cried Uzumaki Naruto out at the large group of ninja yelling angrily at him from underneath. "But I can! I'm incredible!"

From below, the Sandaime Hokage stared up at the orange-clad boy dangling from the top of the Hokage monument with a length of wire, smoking his pipe. Although as harmless as his usual jokes, this time Naruto had managed to offend quite a few people by defacing the mountain depicting their rulers. As a Hokage himself he wasn't really bothered, but too many people looked up to him as a hero of the village to simply let something like this slide.

"Geez… What has that idiot done?" pondered Sarutobi to himself.

"Hokage-sama, I apologize for this," said a nearby Chuunin.

The Sandaime turned to face him. His baby face was marred by a scar that ran horizontally from one cheek to the other, crossing over his nose. It was Umino Iruka, one of the teachers at the Academy.

"Oh, Iruka!"

Said Chuunin walked to the edge of the platform they were standing on, raising one leg over the railing. He took in a deep breath, before letting it all out in one fierce shout that resembled more the cry of a lion rather than the scream of a man.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING DURING CLASS TIME?! GET DOWN HERE, YOU MORON!"

"Yikes, it's Iruka-sensei!"

* * *

Adell watched as the Prinnies worked. Virtual slaves they may have been, they worked fast and well. Their flippers worked with incredible dexterity, and their peg legs gave them surprising balance. Each of them carried out the work of three men, and at a third of the speed. The red-haired Demon Hunter was sure that if Prinnies were ever introduced to the human world in large quantities, most of the skilled labour sector would be put out of business faster than you could say 'Pringer X'.

It had taken only half a day for the first floor of the base they were building to take shape, and he was willing to give them about a month before the entire thing was done, furniture included, at the pace they were working at. From his position on a nearby tree, he snacked on a meal of rice balls, enjoying the evening breeze.

"Big brother!"

"Hmm, Taro!" noted Adell from his position up high.

The boy, who had grown slightly since two years ago, waved at him from below, carrying a big piece of lumber. Although the horns he had been born with were gone now, he still wore that silly cow print shirt all the time. However, although his powers as a demon had disappeared, his physical constitution remained the same. Being born a demon had given him strength that no natural human possessed, and even having been turned back into a human most of that strength remained. For five years now, since Taro was six, he had been the uncontested champion of arm wrestling in Holt, although it was probably only because Adell himself never participated.

"Big brother! Princess sent along a Dimension Guide and a Dark Secretary!" cried Taro from down below. "They've been sitting down over there waiting for your orders. Where should I tell them to go?"

"Already?" pondered Adell outloud. "She works pretty fast. Let them stay wherever's comfortable. Did Rozalin say anything about a Dark Hospital worker or Rosenqueen branch stores?"

"Um," muttered Taro. "Dark Hospitals need space, and stores too, right? I think we'll get them when we finish the second floor of the castle, probably."

"Good enough," said Adell to himself. "I just need to make sure that I don't get wounded or use up too much of my Mana. Just to make sure though, we do have a good supply of healing items, right?"

"More Rooster Bloods than you could shake a stick at, Adell!"

"Ugh," blanched Adell. "Gross."

"Speak for yourself, Adell. It tastes great."

"Oh, you're growing a backbone now, aren't you?" grinned Adell, dropping from his position high up in the tree. Before Taro could even react to the sudden movement, the red-headed Demon Hunter had his little brother in a noogie powerful enough to crush oranges. "Say it! Rooster Blood tastes nasty!"

"Alright, alright! Rooster Blood tastes nasty, now let me go!"

The two brothers separated, Adell grinning at his little practical joke and Taro simply rubbing the spot on his head that said joke had probably burnt a little hair off of. When Adell gave you a noogie, it wasn't like a normal noogie. When the recipient said that it felt like it was burning, it probably was.

"You're so mean, Adell… Princess is way nicer."

"Yeah, yeah, sure," nodded Adell. "She totally brainwashed you, we both know it. Rudimentary education for when they become my servants, my butt. Propaganda's probably her most powerful weapon."

"Don't let her hear that, Adell. She'll kick your butt."

That was probably true, reflected the red-haired Demon Hunter. It had been sort of a sore point for him that she was so much stronger than he was now, although they both knew she kept that power under control because she didn't like flaunting it. Although perhaps a little petty, he had always prided himself on being the strongest one in Holt Village. Still, it wasn't something that he would let get the better of himself. Rozalin was a close friend – perhaps she meant even a bit more to him – and he wouldn't let his selfish feelings get between them.

No, instead he'd train his heart out until he became the strongest in Holt again. That's just his style. No cheap tricks of any kind, no selling his soul out to the devil to gain power. He'd play it fair, or his name wasn't Adell.

Although he really couldn't afford to get himself injured now, what with the Dark Hospital not in order. Until the place opened up, he'd have to take it easy. Then he'd be able to duke it out with the nearby demons all he wanted. Speaking of which…

"Oh yeah, Taro," noted Adell. "Is the Dark Assembly open for business?"

"Not yet," shook the boy's head. "The Dark Secretary said she'll need some time to fill out all the papers to legally gain entrance into the Dark Assembly from here. Why, Adell?"

"Well, I was thinking," said the red-headed Demon Hunter, surveying the construction. The Prinnies were taking a little break now, some of them even opening up little blue lunchboxes with lettuce and porridge inside. If Etna or even Rozalin were here, he was sure they wouldn't have had the guts. All of the Prinnes knew that Adell was less of a hardass than the girls, though, and so they took advantage of that. Not that the Demon Hunter had a problem with it, he felt that they deserved the break. "It'd be a good idea to get a couple vassals and train them up a bit. If I go out demon-hunting, this place is going to be completely defenceless. Well, except for the Prinnies, but these guys aren't as strong as Etna's personal Prinny Squad. They wouldn't last five seconds against a serious assault from even a Demon Lord."

"Hmm, that's a good idea," said Taro. "You should probably stay here until you train up a couple vassals strong enough to guard the house while you go out, then."

"Ugh, add another problem to the list," groaned Adell as he rubbed his forehead. He just wanted to go out and bust some heads; was that all so wrong? What he had done to make the Seraphs want to give him one obstacle after another? "Say, how long are you going to be staying, Taro?"

The pre-teen boy cocked his head.

"About three days, give or take," said Taro. "Princess said I should stay until the Prinnies get the rhythm of construction down, whatever that means. She says I should report back to her after three days, and then she'll tell me whether to stay or go."

"I see," said Adell. "Well, I'm not going to hold you up any longer. Go ahead with whatever you were doing before."

"Alright. See ya, Adell!"

The red-headed Demon Hunter watched his little brother run off with the lumber on his shoulder, before shaking his head and climbing up the tree once more. Making himself comfortable, he made sure to keep at least one eye on the construction site at all times. Lord knew that such a racket was going to attract any nearby demons, and it'd be up to him to stop them before too much damage occurred.

It was evening, and the moon was starting to come up.

Luckily, he was used to sleepless nights.

* * *

"Naruto."

"Hmm?"

"Why were you doing that to the monument?" asked Iruka from his position on the stool. In front of him was a steaming bowl of ramen that he had been halfway through eating. "Don't you know who the Hokage are?"

They were at a ramen stand, specifically Ichiraku's. This place was known for good food, and was one of the few restaurants that not only actually let Naruto eat there but also liked him. The boss was a kind man, and his only daughter had long since taken a shine to the whiskered boy. It was as close to a haven as Naruto had.

Naruto looked up from his slurping.

"Of course! Basically, those who receive the Hokage name are the strongest ninja in the village, right? And among them is the Yondaime, who saved the village from the Kyuubi, right?"

"Then why?" asked Iruka, confused. It had been a bit of a surprise to him that Naruto even knew about the demon fox, considering that they had never really talked about it in the Academy, and the few times they had Naruto wasn't there. It seemed that the boy was more serious about becoming a Hokage than he was about his classes, at least.

"Because one day I'm going to get the Hokage name…" said Naruto, slurping down the rest of the broth. Once he was finished, he pointed his chopsticks at Iruka in the most dramatic fashion he could muster. "…and then I'm going to surpass all the previous Hokage! And then, and then! I'll make the village realize my strength!"

Iruka slurped his noodle surprised by the exclamation. Although he knew Naruto pretty well as a teacher, he had never been so aware that the boy's boasting wasn't just boasting. It was a dream, something he strived towards. It was good… Having a goal was good for shinobi, as it caused them to try and improve. Having such an unrealistic goal, however…

"By the way, sensei. I have a request."

"What, you want seconds?" asked Iruka. It wouldn't be surprising to him if he did, considering Naruto's appetite for ramen was rather well-known throughout all of Konoha. He was pretty much Teuchi's star customer.

"No, can I borrow your hitae-ate?"

"Oh, this? Haha, so that's why you removed your goggles," said Iruka with a smile. "Sorry, but this is something for after you graduate. This is a symbol that you've come of age… You know, maybe you'll get one tomorrow after you pass the test."

"Stingy!"

"Haha, don't be like that—"

"SECONDS!"

"Huh?!"

The pair, teacher and student, consumed their ramen quickly, and soon went their separate ways after Iruka footed the bill. Naruto bounced across the rooftops, searching out his home. Although he talked big about becoming a Hokage, in order to do that he first had to become a ninja, and that meant passing the Genin exam tomorrow. Still, there should be no problems, as long as the jutsu selected for the final part wasn't Bunshin.

The hitae-ate... He could feel it already!

* * *

Okay, he was used to sleepless nights, but this was just ridiculous. Since construction had begun, there had been two attacks by roaming squadrons of demons that had just happened to be passing by. They weren't strong enough to be problems, perhaps twice the level of the Prinnies, so they, Taro and he, had taken them out with deadly efficiency. The problem lay within the fact that Taro would be going soon, and even if he devoted his time to defending the new base twenty-four seven it wouldn't be enough.

Adell resolved to himself to get himself a couple new vassals at the Dark Assembly as fast as possible, once the Dark Secretary had filled out the forms. Then, once he trained them to a high enough level, they'd be in business.

"Taro, give me a hand!" cried Adell as he ducked under the swipe of a golem's electromagnetic sword, bending his knees to the extent that his head almost hit the ground.

"Right, Adell!"

Taro charged at the monster from behind, pounding at the monster from the back. With his immense strength, even the childish attack was enough to mess up the demon's balance, allowing Adell to drive a burning fist through its armoured carapace. The demon slumped, and burst into flames as all of the other foes he fought did.

Both brothers slowed down to survey their work. All around them were the bodies of demons, about ten of them. Mostly headless knights, zombies, spirits, with the odd golem around. Judging by the species, this group was at least affiliated somehow with the previous groups he had been beating down. Finding a less-burnt body, he flipped it over, only to be confronted with the same seal on the chest.

"Hey, Taro. Do you know of any demons with this kind of seal?"

The boy with the cow print shirt looked at the seal closely. It was a two-coloured seal, violet and red, that hinted at the identity of the lord of these demons being a Demon Lord, at least.

"I don't think so," said Taro. "But Hanako might know, if she was here."

Adell scowled. Hanako had left home almost immediately after the fight with the fake Zenon, following Etna to her dimension and becoming the vassal of that brat Overlord. Although human, she seemed determined to try and become a Demon Lord at least, which made absolutely no sense to Adell. What kind of normal person wanted to try and turn themselves into a demon anyway?

But... it was the truth that she was getting to learn a lot about the Netherworld from Etna, that cutesy fallen angel who kept spouting about love and justice, and that bratty Overlord. Perhaps it wasn't such a bad thing for a girl with such high ambitions anyway; Lord knew you could do much worse than having a Demon Lord for a little sister. Like a Dark Senator.

Adell shuddered, he hated politicians. His bribes were never enough for them.

"Hmm... Well, it looks like we have a Demon Lord set up nearby, and chances are he knows we're out here too now," said Adell as he observed his surroundings. The Prinnies were hard at work as usual, even during the middle of the night. When Rozalin said twenty hour work days, she really meant it. "We've been attacked twice already, and he should be getting pretty suspicious when none of his patrols are getting back to him. We should be on guard, just in case. I'm going to need your help, Taro."

"You can count on me, Adell!" saluted Taro with a small smile on his face. Adell fought back the pride that was threatening to show on his face. Brainwashing though she did, Rozalin had been a great influence on Taro. The shy boy now had a little more confidence in himself and was more energetic than he used to be. His strength, if what Adell had seen from their previous fights was true, had definitely increased. Probably as a result of all that milk he drank.

"Good. Speaking of which, did the Dark Secretary mention an actual time? When she'd be done with the papers, I mean."

"She's already filled them out and submitted them, big brother. Now we're just waiting for the reply from the Dark Assembly to finalize the process. Once we do that, we can start going to the Dark Assembly."

"Alright, any idea how long that'll take?"

"Umm, Princess always said that the Dark Senators work really slowly, and something about buraue... beurou... bure... official red tape and stuff. She says it's usually half-a-day in the best case, and you could wait up to a week in the worst case."

Adell groaned.

* * *

There was something to be said for waking up early, Naruto decided. Too bad it was completely overshadowed by the fact that waking up so early left him tired, cranky, and completely unresponsive when it came to roll call. Well, that didn't matter anyway. After today, he'd be a real ninja! No more crappy Academy assignments for him anymore... No way!

Iruka, who was standing in front of the student desks, began speaking up.

"Now, for the graduation exam, you will be doing the Bunshin no Jutsu," explained the Chuunin instructor. "When you are called, come to the next room."

Shit, that was just great. Bunshin, his worst skill and everybody knew it. With the way it was going, there was like an eighty percent chance of him failing. The orange-clad boy swore to himself. But that didn't matter, not in front of a future Hokage like yours truly. He'd ace that exam, Bunshin or no, otherwise his name wasn't Uzumaki Naruto!

"Uzumaki Naruto!"

He'd do it!

"Bunshin no Jutsu!"

* * *

The Dark Assembly, when you didn't know what to expect, was honestly a pretty terrifying experience, Adell realized. Luckily, however, he was experienced in such matters, being force-fed information about the place by his more politically-minded friends – read, Rozalin and Tink – who wanted to fill his brain with more than thoughts of fighting. How many times did he have to tell them; it wasn't like he was stupid or anything, he just preferred fair fights above anything else! That was just his style! He had even been made Dark Senator for a short time, although that was an experience he'd rather forget.

This time, however, he was standing in front of the Dark Assembly as somebody making a request. Staring out into the crowd, he recognized several demons that had been rather friendly with him during his short tenure as one of their members, as well as one or two that he had somehow inadvertently managed to anger. Oh well, that didn't really matter. Worst case came to worst, he could beat the hell out of them.

"The Dark Assembly will hear the request of Adell, Demon Hunter."

Oh, smooth move. They had to go and do that, didn't they? Maybe for the sake of playing political games in the Dark Assembly, he should change his title to Demon Lover or Hugger or something, although that would probably creep out the majority of the Dark Senators. He had learnt by now that most demons acted allergic to words like love and peace.

"I'm here today to submit a request for vassals," announced Adell, enunciating clearly. It was a good thing that his usual outfit had a tie; it made him more refined-looking, and appearance was important in the Dark Assembly. "Currently, I'm in the middle of an expansion. I intend to take over the new Netherworld as its Overlord, but for that I need able soldiers and fighters. Rest assured, once I reach the top, I will forge closer ties with the Dark—"

"There is absolutely no way that this Dark Assembly could approve a request like that from a self-proclaimed 'Demon Hunter' such as yourself!" interrupted a gargoyle sitting towards the right from the direction Adell was looking at. The red-headed Demon Hunter groaned. It was Senator Ross, the gargoyle. He was the one who hated him with a passion. "Think on it, my fellow Senators! If we provide weaponry to one with such obvious ill intent, do you think he will hesitate to turn those weapons upon ourselves?!"

Those were some good points, Adell had to admit.

"I object!" cried a voice from another part of the room. It was Senator Magdalena, a succubus. She had always been fond of him during his days as a Dark Senator, and although she often came on a bit strong he was glad to have her as one of his supporters. "Adell has been nothing but helpful to the Dark Senate, and has even worked as a Senator when we had that imbalance a year and a half ago. He has demonstrated obvious loyalty, and although he proclaims to be a Demon Hunter he has never assaulted anything of a higher rank than a Netherworld Noble! Adell the Demon Hunter is a valued member of the Dark Assembly, and his request should be granted!"

"I agree with Senator Magdalena," growled a low rumbling voice from another part of the room. It was the holy dragon, Senator Goodman. Although rare for a holy dragon to vote 'aye' in a Dark Assembly at all, Adell had managed to get a few of them on his side. "Adell, during his dealings with the Dark Assembly, has never been less than noble and fair, something sorely lacking here and in politics in general. We, the holy dragons as a whole, will definitely vote 'aye' in case it comes to a poll."

"I disagree—"

The room burst into a cacophony of noise as Senators screamed at each other from across their seats. The entire Dark Assembly had turned into a madhouse, with demons flinging curses and insults at others. Adell rubbed his head; this was practically routine for the courtroom. Demons couldn't agree on anything after all, and usually in the end it always came down to a –

"Enough, it seems that there is a difference in opinion here," said Senator Ross. "Although I am loathe to admit it, there seems to be quite a similar number of both supporters and detractors. Let us settle this in a vote!

There it was.

Within seconds, the entire room quieted, and the Dark Secretaries that lined up alongside the outer edges of the courtroom had their tallies ready. There were two Secretaries for each row, and they would be charged with making sure that the votes of the Senators they were in charge of were correct.

The Head Secretary, a red mage, appeared beside Adell.

"The vote shall commence!"

"AYE!"

"NAY!"

Voices rang throughout the courtroom as the voting process began. Demons slammed their hands on the tables, and jumped and yelled. 'Aye's and 'Nay's came flying from every direction as the Dark Secretaries hurriedly jotted down all the votes that came.

Adell crossed his arms. His part was pretty much over.

* * *

"So, what you're saying is that all I can get is a Good-For-Nothing?" aksed Adell, crossing his arms. The Dark Assembly was over now, and all of the Senators had gotten out of the courtroom. He had won by the tiniest of margins, by the space of about two votes. With a margin that small, he wasn't really expecting to get anything good, but... "I expected at least two Good-For-Nothings. Isn't that the standard procedure when it comes to acquiring vassals?"

The Head Secretary nodded.

The Dark Assembly ran a screening process during which they determined the potential of a demon, from Genius to Distinguished all the way down to Good-For-Nothing. It was a universal scale, one that all demons, humans, and even angels were subject to. Although Good-For-Nothings were generally known to be very weak, it was a challenge for many a mentor to try and raise a Good-For-Nothing to be the very best they could be.

"It is, generally, but this Netherworld is a special case," said the Head Secretary. "Due to its recent creation... There haven't been a lot of demons created yet, you see."

"Created?" asked Adell, puzzled.

"You don't know? When a Netherworld is created, where do you think the first demons come from?" asked the Head Secretary. "They aren't born, you see. Instead, they are created out of free-floating Mana and shaped by any nearby demonic influence."

"I see," said Adell. "Whatever. Just give him to me."

He really couldn't afford to be picky, after all.

"Very well," smiled the Head Secretary. Dark energy started gathering around her hands, as she prepared to cast the spell that would locate a demon that fulfilled all the necessary requirements. "One Good-For-Nothing, coming right up."

* * *

The sun was shining, the birds were chirping. It was three in the afternoon, and school was over. The last school day of the year for the Academy students. Well, except for the graduates. They still had to come the next day to get their team assignments, but otherwise they were all done. No homework to do, no more tests to worry about. For the graduates, they would be moving onto much bigger and better things; fighting as ninja for the good of the village.

Well, that was only for the graduates, though.

He had failed.

Uzumaki Naruto had failed.

Sitting in the shade, on those abandoned swings, he watched as those who had passed met with their parents and received praise. The way their faces brightened up only served to deepen his depression. It wasn't fair... Dammit. But there was no bemoaning fate. What had happened had happened, and there was nothing else for it.

He Uzumaki Naruto, was a failure.

"Great job! That's my son!"

"I'm so proud of you, I'm going to make your favourite dinner!"

The voices of praise reached his ears, and he could feel himself slipping deeper. Although he had always been good at fighting depression before, this time it was different. The combined weight of the test, and the hateful glares that the parents drove at him drove him to the edge.

He, Uzumaki Naruto, was a good-for-nothing.

As soon as that thought hit him, he felt it. Energy was gathering around him, winds from every direction. The leaves and twigs on the ground flew into the air as some unseen force moved towards him, and he stumbled off the swings in shock. Before he had another chance to react, before any of the parents and Academy graduates that had been staring at him could do anything, he disappeared in a flash of purple light.

For the first time in several hundred years, Kyuubi, still trapped within his cage, wondered about the form that he had filled out for the Dark Assembly all those years ago stating his wish to become a vassal. As soon as that thought came to him, he banished it just as quickly. What was the point of dwelling on old memories?

* * *

It was like he had been chopped up into pieces, put through a grinder, and then through a blender, Naruto decided as he rubbed his forehead. There was a dull thud of pain in the back of his head, but it was overshadowed completely by the humongous migraine that he was currently suffering from. He opened his eyes, only to be blinded by the glare of lights above.

Voices from around him could be heard, although he couldn't really make out the words that they were saying. There was the voice of a young man, as well as what seemed like the voice of a younger boy, around his age. And there were other voices as well... strange ones. They kept going 'dood'...

"...I don't get it, did the Dark Assembly screw up?..."

"...Look, his ears are round, dood..."

He could feel the migraine fade until it was nothing more than a dull ache in the back of his brain, and Naruto opened his eyes once more, this time blinking several times to get used to the bright light. Sitting up, he realized he was sitting on a bed in what seemed to be a half-finished hospital room. A red-haired man noticed his awakening, and got up from where he was sitting to greet him.

"Hey there," said the man with a friendly smile on his face. The first thing Naruto noticed other than his bright hair were the marks on his cheeks – they seemed to be scars – and his attire. It wasn't like anything he had ever seen in Konoha before. This guy must've been a foreigner then. "The name's Adell. You were knocked out when you arrived, must not be used to being warped by Dimension Guides, huh. You submitted a request to be a vassal, right?"

Vassale…? What the hell was that? Naruto struggled to get up before finally doing so, staring at the red-headed man in a sort of half-hidden curiosity.

"A… A-de-ru?"

"No, no. Adell," grinned the red-headed man. "Since I introduced myself, it's only right that you do the same, don't you think?"

"Adell…" repeated Naruto, rolling the name off his tongue. It definitely wasn't a normal name; the guy was definitely a foreigner. Oh well, that didn't really matter. He still hadn't really shaken off his depression, so his demeanour was less cheerful than normal. "I'm Uzumaki Naruto."

"Uzumaki, huh? Nice to meet you."

"Um, no. My given name's Naruto," said Naruto. He had realized pretty quickly the source of the strange feeling that Adell gave him; he was the first stranger that he had ever met who was older than him yet didn't treat him like dirt. He had resigned himself to being despised and ignored all his life, it was the reason he wanted to become Hokage after all – to change that, so this was a bit of a pleasant surprise for him. It probably had something to do with him being a foreigner. "Nice to meet you too. Where am I?"

Adell rubbed his head.

"Well, this is the Netherworld. Or Hell. Whatever you want to call it."

Naruto's eyes widened.

"Wait, so I'm dead?!"

"What? No, no, no! Whatever gave you that idea?" asked Adell, suddenly nonplussed. He put a large hand on the boy's shoulder. "Jeez, and here I thought I was the one with misconceptions about the demon world. Don't worry about it, kid, you're alive! How do you not even know about the Netherworld? Are you a demon at all?"

"What are you talking about?" asked Naruto, he was starting to go into hysterics. Here he was, in a place he knew nothing about with a person he knew nothing about and the guy was calling him a demon. There was something seriously strange going on around these parts, and he wasn't sure if he wanted to be a part of it. Maybe it was a revenge prank from the villagers or something, he didn't know. "A demon? Is that what you think I am? How did I get here?!"

Adell scratched his neck. Well, it seemed that the Dark Assembly made a mix-up somewhere, but there was nothing for it. It was already too late... If the kid was here, it was because paperwork had been filed in his name.

"Look, don't worry about it, alright? I'll try to explain things as best I could," said Adell. "Let's start over. My name's Adell, and I'm a Demon Hunter. I'm here in this Netherworld to fight for the title of Overlord, which is kind of like the king of demons."

"Eh?"

"This is my little brother Taro, and these guys are Prinnies. Basically, they're the soul of human sinners working off their hours with community work and slave labour. Just remember not to throw them, or you'll probably get blown up."

"Umm... Hi."

"Wassup, dood?"

"Eeeeeh?"

"Oh yeah, something went wrong with the Dark Assembly, so now you're stuck as my vassal," said Adell, sheepishly. "Basically, you're like my servant. Sorry about that, but the bond between a mentor and an apprentice is basically unbreakable. You're going to have to stay here to help me out with becoming an Overlord and everything. You can fight, can't you?"

"EEEEEEEEEHHH!?"


	2. Chapter 2: The Apprentice

Disgaea: When Worlds Collide

By Random Writer 46

* * *

Chapter 2

The Apprentice

* * *

Rozalin sighed as she brushed away a strand of blonde hair, looking over Holt Village from her position on top of Adell's home. Since the incident, she had taken to living here; neither Adell's mom nor dad minded. In fact, they took to her like a long-lost member of their family. After finally meeting up with the fake Zenon and learning the truth about her past, this was the closest thing to family she had.

There was nothing to do, she realized. If it had been any other Overlord, she was sure they would've been suffering challengers to the throne and such all the time, but she was hidden. Nobody knew Overlord Zenon still lived, especially after that incident which Axel had covered up as a hoax, and Veldime was so out of the way that it was considered backwater, so that cut down the amount of inter-dimensional travellers as well.

Oh yes, Holt Village was a pleasant place to live in, and all of her closest friends and acquaintances also inhabited this area, but the problem was that many of them were gone at the moment. Adell was off at the new Netherworld, probably enjoying the fight of his life against a horde of Demon Lords and Overlords seeking a throne (of course, he'd be kicking their butts – that's what battle maniacs did best, after all), Taro was off with him, Hanako had gone off to be Etna's apprentice and was now living in the Netherworld of Disgaea which was pretty far from the Human World of Veldime, and Tink was acting as her representative in Veldime's Netherworld. There was nothing to do.

She was sure everybody was having more fun than her.

* * *

"Get down from there! You're going to hurt yourself!"

"Go screw yourself! I'm a ninja!"

Adell swore as he watched Naruto barricade himself on the top floor of the base they were constructing. The Prinnies had tried to get him down already, but for a human kid whose level was way below theirs he was pretty damn fast at picking things up and throwing them. More often than not, said things were Prinnies. The orange-clad ninja-in-training was wrecking their base faster than they could rebuild; if he didn't get that kid down here sooner or later they were going to have to start from scratch again. Not to mention he'd be missing his workforce of elite slaves too. There'd be no telling what sort of hell Rozalin would be willing to put him through if he went back with a fifth of the force she had sent him out with. Although he had scoffed at it before, being hit with consecutive Rose Liberations was no walk in the park, that was for sure.

Another Prinny climbed up the equipment, intent on tackling the orange-clad reluctant vassal from his deeply entrenched spot on the steel beams and girders. Once again, before the Prinny even noticed, it had been picked up and thrown towards the ground, where it exploded like all the others and set off a chain reaction that left little stuffed penguin bits everywhere. Which was kind of annoying since the Dark Hospital wasn't up yet.

Well, the kid was lucky. The Prinnies weren't fighting to kill, otherwise he would've been dead twenty times over by now. Still… it wasn't safe for him to be so high up there without any safety equipment, especially when he was fending off attacks. If this kept up then…

Naruto gave a yelp as he slipped on the edge of a beam and plummeted towards the ground, letting off long strings of curses as he did so. Adell sighed; yep, just like he had expected. Oh well, a Demon Hunter's work was never done.

"Taro, throw me!" ordered the red-headed Demon Hunter, and his little brother obliged, picking him up with the leg and swinging him around like a mace.

With a yell, Taro let his older brother go and watched him soar through the air towards the falling boy. Adell flew, resembling a red streak as he bounced towards a nearby beam and ricocheted off, righting himself in mid-air. Without any unnecessary movements he made his way towards Naruto, and gripped him in mid-air before landing smoothly on the grass.

"Told ya, that's dangerous," said Adell.

"Bite me, demon," growled Naruto as he stuck his tongue out and struggled in vain. Demon or not, he wasn't going to let any random punk manhandle his Hokage butt. "Once I figure out where the hell I am I'm getting out of here!"

Adell sighed once more.

"Look, how many times do I have to tell you?" asked the red-headed Demon Hunter. "I'm not a demon, alright? I'm human… HUMAN. That means I'm the same as you, so you can stop talking like that."

"You kidnapped me! What kind of human goes around wanting to be kind of demons anyway?!"

"Technically I wasn't the one who kidnapped you, alright? That was the Head Secretary! All I did was ask for an apprentice, and she gave you to me. If you've got any problems, you can take it to her! Anyway, it's not king of demons, alright, it's the Overlord. And humans can become Overlords, this kind of stuff has happened before."

"King of demons is king of demons!"

"Ugh… I don't have time for this," said Adell. "Look, it's not like I'm not sorry for the entire mess. It's true that I probably got you involved in something that you didn't want, but what's done is done."

"You better take responsibility, asshole!"

"Look, I PROMISE that I'll try to find you a way back, but currently we can't do that!" said Adell. "Netherworlds and Human Worlds are separated by powerful force fields, and until we find a spot where the barrier is weak we can't get you back, alright? Not to mention the contract of the vassal binds you to me, so until we break the contract…"

"I don't have time for this!" cried Naruto, kicking. Adell's grip on his collar was like steel, and since the guy was about a head and a half taller than him he found himself hanging in mid-air. "I've gotta get back to my village and retake the ninja test, 'ttebayo! How the hell can I become Hokage if I get roped into working for a de—"

"Okay, we're done here," said Adell, handing the kid over to a nearby Prinny. "Take him, and keep him somewhere until he cools down. Show him around or something, and for Baal's sake don't let him out of your sight. If I find him on the third floor blowing up my workforce again, I'm going to have to send you guys back to Rozalin and ask for another batch."

The Prinny shivered in fear as thoughts of the demonic Rose Overlord reached its mind. Getting blown up was no problem, not when there was, or would be, a Dark Hospital right next door. Getting chained to a chair in a pitch-black room while being forced to watch reruns of 'Tripping with Axel' was an entirely different can of worms.

* * *

"What are you talking about, you can't find him?!" cried Iruka as he slammed his hands down on the desk. Although he wasn't normally so brazen in front of the Hokage, this was a special case. It concerned a student of his, probably the one he felt the closest to. "Where's Naruto!?"

"Eyewitness accounts state that he disappeared into thin air at the Academy playgrounds," said Sarutobi calmly. "Although the parents who talked were quite obviously against Naruto, there is no reason for them to lie."

"Could it have been a Shunshin?"

"Impossible," said Sarutobi. "Most of the parents were trained ninja. Any shinobi would be able to recognize a Shunshin, and every single one of them said it definitely didn't feel like one. The Shunshin no Jutsu, like all jutsu, takes both chakra and concentration. There was no chakra released at that instant, and I'm pretty sure that Naruto, who can't even manage a Bunshin correctly, would suddenly be able to use a Chuunin-level skill, and that's not even touching upon the subject of the violet light. Something else is going on here."

Iruka slumped in his chair, burying his head in his hands. He was worried, oh God he was worried. Naruto was gone, one of his precious students had disappeared into thin air and nobody knew where he had gone. There was no logical explanation for his disappearance, and there was no precedence of this kind of thing ever happening before. What little they had to call a lead couldn't be followed; all the clues they had added up to nothing more than smokes and mirrors. They were at a dead end, with no idea where one of their own had disappeared into.

"Calm yourself, Iruka," said Sarutobi, standing up from his seat and putting a gentle hand on the Chuunin instructor's shoulder. "I know you care for your students. It's one of the main reasons you were chosen as Naruto's instructor in particular, and it's good to see that somebody cares enough for him to miss him. But trust in the shinobi of Konoha, we are doing our best to find him."

"I know," answered Iruka. "It's just…"

"You're tired Iruka," said Sarutobi. "I understand that tomorrow you'll be the one handing out team assignments; you must be strong so that your students remain unworried. Go home and rest now, you deserve it."

"I… Alright," said Iruka, defeated.

Standing up, the Chuunin instructor walked towards the door, giving one last nod at the Hokage before he left. As he walked out of the Hokage's tower, he couldn't help but feel overwhelmed by the combined emotions of loss and despair. He hoped against hope that Naruto would be found quickly, but knew in his heart that it'd be a long time before he saw his wayward student again.

To think that the last face Naruto had seen him wearing was his instructor's face… He didn't want that. He wanted Naruto to know that he saw him as more than a troublesome student… That he was a good kid and definitely somebody he thought would become a big name someday.

Iruka turned his eyes towards the sky, wondering if Naruto was looking at the same sight from somewhere far away.

* * *

Work had stopped for the day, at least temporarily, Adell noted as he sat around the fire. The Prinnies were gathered around the fire, chattering amongst themselves about work and other things, and exclamations of 'dood' was heard from everywhere in the clearing. Taro was helping several Prinnies cook the food, as a large pot – or rather cauldron – was set atop the large fire. Naruto had been hogtied by the Prinnies to prevent him from doing weird things again, and now the kid was biting at his restraints, trying to set himself free.

Adell sighed, before moving over next to the orange-clad boy, and ripping open the ropes with ease. The orange-clad ninja looked up at him with wide-eyes, before turning away.

"Come on, don't be like that," said Adell, offering a bowl to the orange-clad ninja sitting next to him now. "Soup? It's pretty good, you know. You'd never believe it, but those Prinnies really know how to cook."

"Fine, but only because there's nothing else to eat around here and I'm hungry. Don't think this means I'm okay with being your vessel, alright!?" cried Naruto as he accepted the bowl, before digging in like a hobo on a baked potato. Adell watched as his reluctant apprentice nearby choked on the meat chunks within the soup twice, hitting him on the back both times to help choke it up. Naruto would never admit it, but those slaps felt like cannons.

"That's vassal, not vessel."

"Yeah, whatever," said Naruto as he assumed his natural squinty fox face, drinking down the remains of the soup. "That doesn't matter to me, since I'm not going to be one anyway. I'm getting out of here at the first opportunity I get, 'ttebayo!"

Adell sighed. This kid was more of a pain than Rozalin when he had first met her; he could feel the déjà vu.

"Alright, alright, I don't have a problem with that. You should try and keep yourself out of trouble, though," said Adell. "The demons here in the Netherworld don't think the same way that humans do. Killing and stealing is commonplace where demons roam, so you better watch out. With your level of power… well, you'd be nothing more than a stain on the wall if they even flick you a little too hard."

"Ha! The great future Hokage Uzumaki Naruto-sama isn't afraid of small things like a couple of demons! I can take care of them as they come!" grinned the orange-clad shinobi, slurping down the remains of the soup. "Hey, demon-san. Get me some more of that soup, thanks."

Adell took the bowl from the boy, before tossing it over to Taro, who caught it without looking. Filling it to the brim with more of the Prinny's soup, he passed it along a row of Prinnies before it got back to Naruto's hands.

"Thanks, demon-san," grinned Naruto. "Hey, I think you owe me an explanation for all the weird stuff that's going around here. Don't you think so too?"

"Sure. What do you want to know?"

"Tell me more about this place and demons and stuff!"

"I thought you wanted nothing to do with demons…?" asked Adell, before shrugging his shoulders and crossing his arms. All around him the Prinnies were continuing with their chatter, and the flames were starting to die down a little. Adell raised his hand, and with a snap of his fingers sent the flames soaring higher than before. "Well, a Netherworld is basically a world where demons live, like the Human World is a place where humans live. There isn't a lot of difference between each one, other than the fact that Netherworlds all operate under the same rules and monarchies as others, and the demon standing at the top of each Netherworld is known as the Overlord of that world. There are many Netherworlds out there, and people can travel between each one, like I did to get here."

"Ano, ano, does that mean there's an Uberlord here already?"

"That's an Overlord, and no," said Adell, drinking from a bowl of his own. The soup was pretty good, although it wasn't strong enough for the red-headed Demon Hunter. He was a carnivore, being a big fan of veggies didn't really fit into the whole deal. "No, there isn't. This Netherworld is newly created, been here for only about three months or so. Right now there aren't a lot of native demons here, so demons from alternate Netherworlds are swarming in to try and take control of this place. We have basically a fight for power, with the prize being the title of Overlord of this Netherworld."

"So, kind of like what you're doing then," noted Naruto. "And the title of Overlord is kind of like being the Hokage?"

"Kind of," agreed Adell. "Except I'm not a demon, and I'm not doing it for the power. Also, I have no idea what a Hokage is."

"You don't?! Being a Hokage is great! It's the title given to the strongest ninja in my village, and the one who gets the title of Hokage becomes the leader of the village too!" grinned Naruto as he wiped his mouth. "The Hokage right now is an old guy, and I think he's going to retire soon. That means I've got to make it back before he gives it up so he can pass the position onto me!"

"Sounds pretty interesting, but not as interesting as an Overlord."

"Speak for yourself, demon-san."

"I told you, I'm NOT—"

"Uh-huh, whatever," said Naruto, casually dismissing Adell with a wave of his hand. Said Demon Hunter growled, slightly annoyed at being ignored. "Wait, if you're not doing it for the power, then what are you doing it for then, huh? Sounds like being an Overlord is nothing but power and privileges, kind of like the Hokage. Do you want people to notice you or something?"

"Nothing like that. I'm here for the fights, and because a friend of mine asked me to," answered Adell, drinking his soup. "There are tons of strong demons who want the title of Overlord, you know, and they can't get it because the Overlords from their worlds are far stronger than them. Many other Overlords also want more Netherworlds for their own, and so they set out to conquer other Netherworlds. What happens when you get a bunch of these guys together is a humongous brawl; I'm just here to take part in that."

"Huh, so you're going to wait until they knock each other out and then take down the last man standing, therefore reaching the top?"

"Wha—? No way! What do you take me for?" asked Adell, his eyes widening. He had honestly been surprised by the question. "Of course not; that's way too cheap, not my style at all! I'm going in there with my fists and my flames, and I'm going to beat down one demon after another until I'm the only one remaining. That's when I become the new Overlord, and then once that happens there'll be a never-ending stream of fights!"

Naruto looked up at the Demon Hunter, who had stood up and was now gazing into the bright moon. Flickering flames danced around his feet, betraying his agitated state. The guy was obviously itching for a fight, now that he had pumped himself up. The man obviously deflated after a couple seconds though, before sitting back down.

"Haa… I can't do that though, not yet."

"Why not?" asked Naruto, surprised. Although he didn't know how strong demons really were, he could feel the confidence radiating from the Demon Hunter quite clearly. The guy moved like an acrobat when he had caught him, and was definitely a lot stronger than Iruka-sensei if his grip was to be taken into account. He was also definitely quite the brawler.

"I can't leave this base unguarded, because anybody who's serious about vying for the position of Overlord needs a base," said Adell, rubbing his head. "The moment this place gets destroyed, I lose everything. Until I get myself a couple vassals strong enough to defend it, I can't go out challenging other demons left and right. That's the reason I asked for an apprentice at the Dark Assembly in the first place, but… as you can see, they've given me you."

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?!"

"Haha, don't take it too personally," said Adell, grinning all friendly-like. He patted the blonde boy's head like he usually did with Taro, before looking back at the night sky. "I like you kid, but it's pretty clear that you're a normal human. Probably strong back where you come from, but in the Netherworld the scale of everything changes. Against demons… Well, you're not going to stand a chance."

Naruto growled, but decided not to say anything.

"Anyway, don't worry too much about anything. Just stick by me, and once I find out how to get to your Human World I'll send you," said Adell, finishing off the rest of his soup. "Until then you could just—"

KA-BOOM!

A flash of fire erupted over the campfire, and almost half of the Prinnies found themselves in bits and pieces, the fire having activated their explosive triggers. The rest of the Prinnies were up in a flash, dumping their bowls and retrieving their swords from their packs. Taro had taken the ladle that he had been using to scoop soup out as a weapon, and Adell had taken a fighting stance. Naruto, who had been near the edge of the explosion, felt his body ring with pain.

The orange-clad shinobi looked up to see both Adell and Taro ready to go. How the hell had they managed to come out of that with no visible ailments? They had been closer to the center of the explosion than he had been, yet he was the one who felt all the pain…?

"Enemies?" asked Adell.

"Yes, but this is the first time they've executed a sneak attack," confirmed a nearby Prinny, who unlike the others was wearing an eye-patch. Adell looked at him and nodded; he was the leader of the workforce that Rozalin had sent along, the ones who kept the Prinnies in check. "What are your orders, Lord Adell?"

"Get all of the Prinnies who are still battle-ready gathered up, and prepare for combat. I want at least two guarding Naruto!" ordered Adell. It was a good thing that he wore his Hustle Gloves constantly; it would've taken more time than he could afford to put them on now. "You, what's your name?!"

"Obito," answered the Prinny. "Prinnies, fall in!"

From the ruins of the campfire thirteen Prinnies appeared out of the wreckage, some of them with wounds over their bodies. However, regardless of their physical conditions, their eyes burnt with a fire usually reserved for soldiers who were prepared to go to war. Obito, the Prinny with the eye-patch, looked towards Adell.

"Give us orders, Lord Adell. We will follow."

"Yeah, Adell," agreed Taro, who was brandishing the ladle like he had been doing so all his life. Although Adell didn't really want to admit it, the kid was a genius with weapons, superior to him. Whereas he could only fight unarmed, Taro could use any weapon with the same kind of ease he could his own two hands. "You're the only one here with leadership experience! And the one who's going to become an Overlord!"

"Alright," agreed Adell. He would take charge of the situation, although he usually preferred to fight alone. Anyway, he would consider it practice for once he actually became an Overlord. There would be more vassals to come, after all, and he would need the experience to control them freely. "I want one of you Prinnies to guard Naruto and make sure no harm comes to him. That leaves us with twelve Prinnies! Obito, lead them as you will; I'm not too familiar with their abilities just yet. Now move it, we don't know when the enemy will show up!"

The Prinnies acted quickly, gathering up in a line behind Obito. Naruto watched as one of the Prinnies quickly moved beside him with surprising agility for something that walked on peg-legs.

And not a moment too soon, either.

"Here they come!" cried Adell. "Get your weapons ready!"

From the surrounding forest, monsters of all kinds appeared, voices screaming in a symphony of horror. Naruto could only stare, wide-eyed, as both sides engaged in battle. The Prinnies that had chased after him so clumsily turned into slicing, dicing, killing machines as they tore through the ranks of the demons in front of them, gutting and decapitating. Here and there he even saw a couple pull off what he could only describe as jutsu, including jumping several feet into the air, staying there, and lobbing what seemed to be flying discs of energy at their foes. Taro, the kid who looked to be around the same age as he was, was attacking the enemies with his ladle like a lion tearing at its prey, and Naruto could swear the kid even managed to put a basketball-sized dent in the armour of a Headless Knight. The scene was beyond his wildest dreams.

What doubts he had about Adell before, about his story of demons and Netherworlds, as well as the difference in the scale of power disappeared immediately, dispelled by the sounds and sights of the battle in front of him. Most surprising of all to him, however, was the sight of Adell tearing through foes like chainsaw on pine.

There was no way he was a ninja, because he simply did not fight like one. He fought like a street fighter, a warrior, not a soldier or a trained assassin. Each and every single one of his moves were so telegraphed that Naruto was sure even he would've been able to dodge them had they been slower, but Adell moved at another class of speed; it was like he existed in a separate flow of time. His blows were nothing to be scoffed at either, as Naruto could feel the shockwave fly through the air with each hit he struck; it was like being being pelted with small rocks. Even the Jounin he had seen around the village wasn't capable of something like this, Naruto realized with a jolt. The Demon Hunter's strength and speed were both on separate levels, and Naruto guessed his stamina was as well.

Adell tore through another two demons with his hands aflame, before planting his hands on the ground and flipping over like a break-dancer, tearing through another two demons with his legs ablaze. The ground where he had planted his hands was cracked as if a ten ton hammer had struck it, and the grass at his feet withered as soon as it came within five meters of his flame. He was a burning, whirling dervish, tearing through enemies like paper cranes. Naruto could only stare in awe. Adell controlled his flames like they were an extension of himself, completely unlike the way that shinobi did. Although he didn't use a lot other than what seemed like taijutsu and the flames, he didn't need to. None of the demons had landed a hit on him just yet.

Taro successfully fended off the attack of a Wood Golem with the ladle, pushing the lumbering blow to the side before jumping on the behemoth's arm and charging up the wooden limb. What clumsiness he had exhibited in his youth had now disappeared almost completely during the midst of a battle, although he still wasn't as mobile as his older brother. Gripping the ladle with all his might, he smashed it against the side of the Wood Golem's head, blasting it into smithereens. Naruto shook his head at the sight, wondering if he was seeing things. There was no way the kid, who was lankier and skinner than he himself, had the strength to destroy something like that with what seemed like a two-pound cooking utensil. This had to be a dream.

The Prinnies had organized themselves into a proper squad, this one resembling what Naruto was used to a lot more. Obito had proven himself an able commander, keeping his men – er, penguins – in line with nothing more than grunts and hand – err, flipper – signals to go by. Although the organization of the squadron was nothing new to Naruto, the way they fought definitely was. From the pouches on their stomachs, they pulled out all sorts of weaponry, from the machetes they seemed to prefer to even things like bombs and skulls that fired rays of light from its eyes. It was unimaginable to Naruto that these things could be defeated simply by picking them up and throwing them; not with the way they were fighting now. Glass cannons indeed, as he watched Obito toss one of his teammates at a crowd of demons only to blow them all to bits. Oh well, the Prinnies themselves didn't seem so worried about being blown up; perhaps they could be put back together or something.

"What are you doing just standing around?" roared Adell as he took a slight breather in between attacks. The burning corpses of two Mothmen dropped behind him as he let the flames on his limbs die down slightly. "Prinny, take Naruto and get out of here! We don't know how long this fight is going to go on, or how many enemies we—"

He wasn't allowed to finish the sentence as another Headless Knight attempted to decapitate him with its large sword. Jumping over the blow, he gripped the monster by the hole where its head was supposed to be, before flinging it against a group of trees. Normally, he preferred slamming his foes against steel, but the only steel around was the stuff they were using for construction, and he really didn't want to ruin it any further than Naruto had already done.

The Headless Knight's armour cracked as it smashed against the bark, completely destroying an entire row of trunks before coming to a stop, completely still. It had been taken out. Adell landed on the ground smoothly, before turning back to Naruto.

"Get out of here!"

"Aye-aye, dood!" saluted the Prinny who had been assigned to be Naruto's bodyguard. Its flipper wrapped around Naruto's hand, giving him a telling stare, before it tugged and started to run along, the orange-clad ninja following awkwardly behind. The sight of the battle had stunned him to the degree that he wasn't feeling entirely himself.

Adell turned back towards the battle, his fists erupting into flames. Although the enemies weren't exactly the best he had ever fought, their numbers proved to be an adequate challenge; good enough for him, at any rate. Gripping his hand into a fist, he drove into another demon, this time a Wood Golem.

Now, with Naruto out of the way, he could enjoy himself.

* * *

"Wait, what are we running for?" asked Naruto. They were bounding through the trees; at least this was something familiar to the trainee ninja. Although it was a bit of a mystery as to how the Prinny was capable of such a thing, with its flippers and peg-legs.

"Weren't you listening, dood? If you stick around you're going to be in danger!"

"But… Adell was taking care of it fine, wasn't he? Those Taro and Obito guys weren't slouches either," noted Naruto, as he remembered the battle. Never again would he be impressed by a fight between shinobi, not after something like that. It wasn't like humans fighting humans, no, it felt more like a clash of nature. Not man against man, but the north wind against the sun. "I would've been fine!"

"Don't be stupid, dood! There's no telling what kinds of demons will show up once they take care of the small fry… Maybe even a Demon Lord, looking at the size of that army. D'you honestly think you'll last a second when demons like Adell go all out?"

"I thought he was human—"

"Demon or human, his power's still the same!" cried the Prinny. "If two demons on their level clashes, then even the forest itself will be destroyed. You wouldn't stand a chance; they'll kill you without even meaning to!"

"D—demons are that strong…?" asked Naruto, once more surprised. He hadn't expected Adell's level of strength, but to think that even now he wasn't going full out. It was kind of humbling, to realize that he was nothing more than a frog in a well that was just confronted with the view of the ocean.

"Lord Adell's not even the strongest demon we know, dood! Lady Rozalin and Master Etna are even stronger!" cried the Prinny. "…Although Lord Adell is the nicest out of all of them. We like him the best."

Naruto shuddered. He had felt the shockwave from Adell's fists even when he wasn't going all out; that was honestly rather terrifying. If he were to take off the kiddie gloves and pile on the pain… Well, he was sure that instead of feeling like he was being pelted with pebbles it'd be more along the lines of being barraged by boulders. Or perhaps burnt to ashes by his flames; he really didn't want to dwell on the many ways that Adell would be able to kill him without meaning to.

To think, there were demons even stronger than him (Naruto's mind had classified Adell as a demon already; it was unthinkable for mere humans to be so strong), it felt like another level on the scale had opened up, and this was the second time in a day too. As it was, he couldn't even watch a battle at that level without being obliterated.

"Alright, we should be fine here, dood…" said the Prinny as they landed on a nearby branch. "This should be far enough from the battle. If Lord Adell goes all out, then you might feel a bit of pain, but it shouldn't be enough to kill you."

"Oh great," said Naruto sarcastically. "That's reassuring."

"You take what you can get in the Netherworld, dood," said the Prinny. "Lady Rozalin works us twenty hours a day, seven days a week, dood. I'm sure whatever you go through must be a cakewalk compared to that."

"Seriously? Twenty fours?! That's slave—"

"Shh! Not now. There's a presence approaching!"

The Prinny took up a fighting stance, retrieving two machetes from its pouch. Naruto also dropped into a fighting stance, readjusting the goggles on his forehead, and pulled out a kunai from his holster. Although he wasn't the strongest being around – alright, he was pathetic when compared against the likes of Adell and Taro – he was confident in his ability to support, at least. If there really was a hostile enemy approaching, he'd support the Prinny with kunai and shuriken.

The attack had been shockingly fast, Naruto through in hindsight. A figure appeared right beside the Prinny, intent on skewering it through. Fortunately, however, the penguin demon had been expecting and attack and countered, striking the attacker with the sharp end of the machete, leaving a gash on the cheek. The figure bounded backwards onto another branch, before standing up and revealing its full figure.

It was a man, perhaps around Adell's age. His eyes were red, although one side was covered by his medium-length silver hair. A mask covered his nose and mouth, and the clothing that he wore consisted of muted browns, greens, and blacks. Had Naruto been home, he would've guessed the enemy to be a ninja, but in this world where everything was new he couldn't be so sure. In his hand was a spear, and he wielded it like an old master.

"That speed and those reflexes…" muttered the man, twirling his spear about before setting it down. "You must be a member of that famous Prinny Squad, from Netherworld Disgaea, the strongest Prinnies to have ever existed outside of Prinny Land. It's a pleasure."

"Can't say the same, dood," said the Prinny, its eyes narrowing. It moved one of its peg-legs forwards, cutting a menacing if comical figure. "Who are you and what do you want with us, dood? Are you on the same side as those other demons out there?! Who's your boss?!"

"One question at a time, Mister Prinny," said the demon Ninja. "Well… Although you may be a member of the famed Prinny Squad, it seems you're out of practice, does it not? Had you been completely battle-ready, I would've lost my head the moment I entered your range."

The Prinny's eyes narrowed further, if that was even possible.

"How do you know so much about the Prinny Squad, dood? Speak!"

The demon Ninja smiled.

"That's a question you'll want to ask my lord, should you ever get the chance," said the Ninja. "My name is Ishirou, for your information. It seems that this is a battle I can't win, so, regrettably, I'll have to beat a retreat. However, I won't be returning to my lord without an offering of some kind at least."

"What do you— " asked the Prinny, before turning its head. "Naruto!"

The demon Ninja, Ishirou, had put on a burst of speed fast enough to escape the eye, and by the time the Prinny was able to react, Naruto had been knocked out and draped over the Ninja's back as they bounded through the trees. There was no way his little peg-legs could keep up, not against the a member of the fastest class in the Netherworlds, especially not when said member was nearly on his level.

The Prinny swore.

Lord Adell wasn't going to be happy about this.

* * *

Adell stood tall amongst the remains of his enemies, along with Taro and six of the Prinny Squad including Obito. The attack had lasted far longer than he had expected, and the amount of corpses piling up was pretty ridiculously big. Although he never even received a hit, his Mana was starting to run low. It was a good thing that that battle had ended when it did. He looked out over the construction, and sighed in relief when he realized that nothing too important had been broken.

It felt good to let loose a bit every now and then, Adell realized as he clenched his fists. Although it hadn't been his full power, there was a sense of thrill when he had began beating those demons into the ground. Honestly, it was a little annoying that it had ended so soon.

"Taro, are you alright?"

"Yeah, Adell," smiled the younger boy, brandishing his ladle. "That was the first real fight I've gotten into in a long time! I think I've been getting stronger!"

"Definitely," grinned Adell as he gave his younger brother a pat on the head. "Keep this up and you'll be giving me a run for my money in a couple of years. No time for that now, though. Obito, report in. How the status of your squad?"

"Good for the time being," answered the commander Prinny with a salute. His eye-patch was coming a little loose, and the Prinny realized it in time to retie it. "We're not too badly injured, but we haven't fought for a long time; not since we were in the service of Master Etna, anyway. It's going to take a little while for us to bounce back."

"Alright, get some rest then," acknowledged Adell. He gestured towards Taro. "Taro, give me some of the Rooster Bloods."

"Why, Adell? The fight's over, isn't it?' asked the younger brother, although he complied by tossing a couple of the foul-smelling flasks from his pack. Adell caught them in mid-air, before opening the corks and quickly running through them one-by-one. The taste was atrocious, but he would bear with it.

"Better safe than sorry," said Adell. "We don't know when they're going to attack again, or when trouble could arrive. I'd rather drink this stuff now than later, especially considering that the Dark Hospital isn't even up yet."

"Lord Adell!" cried a Prinny who just arrived on the scene. "There's trouble!"

Although he couldn't be quite sure, Adell thought he recognized the one that he had ordered to go and guard Naruto. The absence of Naruto himself did not pass the red-headed Demon Hunter by. Sighing, Adell lowered his face into his hands.

* * *

"Hey, wake up."

Naruto screamed as somebody kicked him in the side. Except it didn't feel like a regular kick, it was more like being hit with a sledgehammer. Curling up and holding a hand over his side, he was sure that at least two of his ribs had been broken. Gritting his teeth in pain to hide any whimpering, he opened his eyes to look at who had assaulted him. The cheerful face of the demon Ninja he had encountered in the forest met him.

The demon, Ishirou, gripped him by the collar, in spite of his feeble attempts to protest, before flinging him towards the wall. When Naruto struck the concrete, he was instantly brought to his knees in pain. This time the impact had been even stronger, and he wouldn't have been surprised if he had broken his spine as well. Crumpling to the floor, he found he didn't even have the strength to hold himself up anymore.

Was this the difference between a normal human and a demon...?

"Ishirou, ztop. He would be uzeless to me if you killed him now."

"My apologies, Master Madera," said the spear-wielding shinobi, stepping to the side. Now that he wasn't blocking Naruto's view, the orange-clad shinobi in training could see who he was talking to. "It's a bit surprising to me that someone found familiar with the Prinny Squad could be so... weak."

A booming chuckle.

"Indeed, I am deeply surpized myself."

It was a figure that resembled the images of vampires he had seen in those picture books back when he had lived at the orphanage, he realized with a jolt. The man, if it was a man, was tall, and floated off the ground about twenty centimetres. His purple cloak swirled about him as if it was alive, and his red eyes were piercing in the same vein that Adell's eyes had been warm. Two horns protruded from the side of his head, and his long hair swirled about even with no wind. Naruto found himself frozen in something resembling terror as the figure moved forwards.

Without even a single movement from the demon, Naruto found himself rising into the air. Dark energy surrounded his body, energy that seemed both bloodthirsty and empty of human emotions. Chains flew down from the sides of the walls, bounding him in mid-air. The dark energy receded, and Naruto found himself slacking against the chains, creating an ominous rattling.

"You... who are you in the zervice of?" asked Maderas, the words rolling off his tongue. Dark energy flared about him as he spoke. "Zpeak, if you do not vish to find your head rolling on the ground. I have little patience for thoze who do not acquiesce to my... requests."

His words themselves, when directed against him, were more fearsome than the strongest ANBU Naruto had ever met. It was all he could do to stop himself shaking from fear; this was completely different from Adell's aura, which was one of warmth and rejuvenation. This demon seemed to radiate negative feelings and it made the orange-clad shinobi, usually courageous and reckless as they came, want to scream in terror.

"Zpeak!"

"No!" cried Naruto, his tongue lashing out.

Maderas seemed honestly surprised by this setback.

"You... a mere human, decides to oppose me?" asked Maderas rhetorically, chuckling to himself. "How very interezting. However, falze bravado will not zave you here, boy. However, zeeing as I am a generouz Demon Lord with a hint of compassion, I will allow you a zecond chance—"

Naruto gathered up all the powerful emotions within his body that made him Uzumaki Naruto, bravery, camaraderie, loyalty, and loneliness, and, along with the shinobi training he had received to resist fear, let him fight back against the overwhelming terror that he felt. It was one thing to be frozen in battle, it was a totally different thing if he couldn't fight back against a person who obviously wasn't going to kill him in the next three seconds.

Gathering up a great ball of phlegm, he hucked it at the towering demon, hitting him straight on the chest of his elegantly-patterned suit. Maderas's eyes widened, and Ishirou actually moved slightly from his spot, looking as though he was prepared to gut Naruto right there.

The orange-clad boy grinned in defiance.

"What the hell did I just say, 'ttebayo!?" cried Naruto, using the last of his strength to fight back against his bonds. The steel chains and bonds rattled against his diminishing strength, although he wouldn't let his enemies know that. "D'you think I'm gonna be scared of a stupid-ass vampire-wannabe and his pet ninja, huh!? Then you don't know Uzumaki Naruto-sama very well!"

It was unclear even to Naruto himself why he was so dedicated to Adell, even willing to defy death for him. Perhaps it was quite clear already in the depth of his being, who was the good guy and who was the bad guy. It was unfamiliar, this clear black and white. In his own world, he had never been able to differentiate between good guys and bad guys, except for Iruka and the old man. Everybody there who scorned him was somebody he would have to protect once he became a ninja. Although he didn't know the red-headed Demon Hunter, he trusted in his word. He had promised that he would get him back to the Human World, and he would believe in him!

His bravado spent, Naruto slumped in his chains, dedicating every last bit of his will to maintaining that angry glare he had on his face. It was something that he had used constantly on his classmates and ignorant adults whenever they did something unfair, and it never worked. It didn't work in this case either, as he would notice soon.

Maderas retrieved a handkerchief from his pocket, wiping at the stain on his suit disdainfully, before turning around and letting the handkerchief fly. By the time the piece of cloth hit the ground, the elegant demon was already almost out of the room.

"Ishirou... break him."

"It'd be my pleasure, Master Maderas."

With that said, the purple demon vanished in a whirlwind of dark energy.

Ishirou turned towards Naruto, glaring at him straight in the eye. The orange-clad shinobi felt fear gathering up once more, but he didn't break, instead staring straight back into the eyes of the demon.

"You still have hope, don't you?"

Naruto's eyes widened as the words came out of the demon's mouth.

"...Hahaha, you're a stupid one indeed," said the demon Ninja, his smile almost radiating through his mask. He twirled the spear on his arm a couple times, before setting it down in a shower of sparks as it made contact against the concrete floor. Naruto almost blanched when he saw the three inch hole made in the ground. "You little vassals all think you're irreplaceable to your lords... Sooner or later you'll learn in time that this is just not the case. Why would he go through the trouble of storming a castle to rescue you, when he could just summon another one through the Dark Assembly and it'd be the exact same?"

Naruto felt the hope vanish, and despair rage from within his heart. Adell wouldn't do something like that... would he? But then again, he had only known the red-headed Demon Hunter for so long, and it would be the path of action that everyone back in Konoha would take...

Ishirou raised his spear into the air.

"...Nobody will be coming to rescue you. Now, let's begin."

Naruto's screams resonated through the entire castle.

* * *

The sun broke out over the horizon as night ended. Adell's troops had spent the entire night scavenging anything they could find from the corpses of their foes, and the Prinnies had managed to get their hands on a few new weapons.

Adell grit his teeth in a combination of rage and despair as he looked at the Prinny who he had tasked with guarding Naruto. He didn't blame the penguin demon, although the poor thing probably believed he did, what with all the shaking and everything. No, the rage was directed at himself, for carelessly throwing the life of his reluctant vassal into danger.

"You have no idea who that Ninja was... Not one?"

"No, dood!" cried the Prinny. "But, he knew about the Prinny Squad, and pretty intimately too, dood. The only people who know that much about us should be... Well, in Veldime, only you and Rozalin and your friends, dood. Otherwise, it could only be people from back home in Netherworld Disgaea, dood."

Adell didn't even need to think about this one. He trusted his friends and allies implicitly, even if doing so lead to being hurt or being betrayed. That was just his style. Although he didn't want to think about it, the only possibility left was that his enemies this time were from Netherworld Disgaea. It definitely couldn't have been Laharl... the kid, although probably the strongest foe he had ever met, wasn't bright enough or seemed willing to take kids hostage; if he wanted them obliterated, he'd come do it himself (which actually resembled Adell). Etna... this was more something of her style, but last he heard from Hanako she had decided to take a break from demoning for a while and relax in the Sea of Gehenna. Flonne, there was absolutely no chance.

Obito, who had been relaxing down on the trunk of a nearby fallen tree, looked at Adell with his one good eye.

"What are we going to do, Lord Adell?"

"There's only one thing to do," said Adell, getting up from where he had been sitting. "We're going to consult the Dimension Guide, and find the nearest concentration of demonic energies. Gather up all of your soldiers who are still battle ready, Obito, and we'll go. Taro, are you with me?"

"Of course, Adell!"

Obito looked at his red-headed lord dubiously.

"Are you sure about this, my lord?" asked the commander of the Prinnies, getting up as well. "Even if we storm the enemy's base, there is no guarantee that we will make it through to the boss, or even that we can defeat him if we do get to him. Not to mention the odds of Naruto being alive are slim... Wouldn't it be easier if you simply made another vassal?"

Adell glared at the eye-patched Prinny. The penguin demon was surprised by the burning intensity within his eyes, and was even more alarmed by the way that his clothing suddenly started flaring up around him, and the flames that started dancing beside his shoes.

"I don't want you to say that ever again," said Adell, clenching his fists. The flames rose higher, almost soaring into the sky. His hair was fluttering, and Obito caught a glimpse of the ears that he had been so intent on hiding, enough for the Prinny's one good eye to widen, anyway. "I don't abandon my comrades, ever! That's not my style! What if Naruto was still alive, huh?! He'd be waiting in the enemy's clutches, hoping against hope that somebody would come to save him! Let's move it!"

With that said, the red-headed Demon Hunter turned his back on the Prinny commander, walking towards the construction site where the Dimension Guide was sure to be. Obito watched as his lord vanished out of sight, before realizing that Taro had sat down beside him.

"Are you mad, Prinny?" asked Taro, still holding that ladle of his. Apparently he had gotten pretty attached to it during the previous battle, and preferred its lightness to the other weaponry he had used before in the past. "...Sorry about using your guys for this, but that's just the way Adell is."

Obito said nothing, lost in thought.

"No... I'm not bothered at all... It's been so long that I've heard somebody say something like that though... And to think, it came from the mouth of a demon as well," said the Prinny, closing his good eye before opening it once more. "I fully approve of this course of action. I'll support Lord Adell to the end."

"Great! But remember, Adell's not a demon, okay?"

"Whatever you'd wish to believe, young one."

Within half a day they had located the stronghold of the enemy, only a mile or two away from their own, but hidden within a forest of lush trees. The moment the Dimension Guide had explained it to them, Adell had set out alongside Taro and seven Prinnies, including Obito. It didn't even take an hour for them to get there, although it would've been infinitely faster had the Dimension Guide used her warp magic. Regrettably, however, the enemy had placed a shield around his castle rejecting foreign warps.

Hidden within the branches of a particularly tall tree, Adell watched the castle from below. Although apparently well-defended, he could clearly see that the demons below were of a much lower level compared to themselves. However, they would still need to be careful. Taro poked his head out of the foliage of a lower tree, looking towards him for orders.

"So, what's the plan, Adell?"

"We don't know where the enemy's boss is," said Adell, cautiously as he continued surveying the territory. "Or how strong he is, or even where he's keeping Naruto. There's no point in being sneaky during situations like these... We'll go with a head-on attack, storming the gates from the front. Tell Obito, and tell Obito to tell his men. Penguins. Whatever."

"A head-on attack...? That's so... battle maniac of you, big brother."

"Oh, quiet. Don't call me that."

"Oh yeah, sorry. Only Princess is allowed to call you that, my bad."

"Get out already!"

"You even sound like her!"

Adell sighed as he watched Taro duck under the foliage again. Since Taro had begun working under Rozalin, he had become cheekier as well. It was good for the boy, but it was annoying for his older brother.

Soon, they had gathered on the ground underneath the shadow of the trees. The sun was shining brightly overhead, but it wasn't getting to them. Right now the mood was that of a serious attack, with each of the members of the squad getting into the mood. Adell looked outwards towards the gates, and back at his men.

"Alright... ATTACK!"

The cries of both Prinnies and his little brother answered them as they charged from the shadows of the forest, storming the gates. The two gargoyles in front never stood a chance, obliterated as they were by a storm of Prinny Barrages. Taro gripped the gigantic handle on the gate, and, with a yell, tore open the steel door. The squad quickly moved inwards, only to spy the incoming mass of monster type demons.

Flames swirled around Adell's arms, and Taro quickly retrieved his ladle. The Prinnies, already with their machetes out, charged into the fray. The sounds of war quickly started resounding throughout the courtyard, as a Demon Hunter, his little brother, and seven penguin demons stormed the castle.

* * *

"What's the report?!" cried Adell as he broke down another demon with his fists and charged straight down the corridor. After the fight in the courtyard, leaving behind a humongous pile of demon corpses, they had charged straight into the castle, splitting up as they went.

The Prinnies that had met up with him in the corridor saluted quickly, before resuming their pace alongside him. They were charging down the center corridor of the castle; Taro, along with a Prinny of his own, had been put in charge of the second floor. Obito and the rest of the Prinnies were scattered throughout the rest of the castle, searching for any signs of either Naruto or the lord of the castle.

"Nothing, dood!" cried the Prinny. "We've lost one Prinny so far, but everything else is alright! We haven't seen hide nor hair of Naruto or the demon that's running this place, dood!"

"No news is good news, at least for now," said Adell. "We're splitting up here! I'll move on into the throne room, and you guys check out the surrounding passages. This castle is huge, we need to split up as far as we can go! You know the signal!"

"Aye-aye! If we find Naruto or the demon, we'll let off a firework that you could see from the moon!" cried the other Prinny, as their run quickly split off from Adell. "We'll see you soon, Lord Adell! Good luck, dood!"

"Right, you too!"

With that said, Adell broke into the throne room, the wooden doors that was halting his entry made short work of by his flames. He hit the ground with a soft thud as the burning chunks hit the ground softly behind him, lighting the carpet on fire. Destruction of artwork wasn't his main priority, nor a great concern of his right now, though, so it really didn't matter to him. What did matter to him, however, was the figure sitting directly in front of him.

Maderas did not give a chance to speak. Without a word, he charged, utilizing his free-flowing cloak much as one would use an arm or a leg. Shaping the flowing cloth into the form of an axe, he aimed for Adell's head. Without breaking stride, the red-headed Demon Hunter gripped the blade of the axe imitation, before ripping the cloth free of the cloak and burning it. He drew his arm back, intent on dealing a punishing blow to the Netherworld Noble, although the demon avoided the follow-up with ease.

Both of them bounced backwards, facing each other. Maderas on top of his throne, and Adell near the chunks of burning wood that had once been a door. They glared into each other's eyes, preparing for the fight that was to come.

"Zo, you've come... For your vazzal, perhaps?"

"What have you done to Naruto!?" cried Adell, gripping his fists. If anything had happened to the annoyingly loud boy, it would be his fault for letting him fall into enemy hands. "Tell me!"

"Vhy should I?" asked Maderas, smirking completely confidently. His cloak billowed about him as if it had a mind of its own. "You've done nothing to warrant my generozity, other than breaking into my castle and killing my men. And thoze events, although perhaps amuzing, do nothing to vin you points from me."

"Big words for a guy whimpering at Etna's feet last I saw him."

"Silence! I am free of that wench at last now that she has a new zervant to look after," said the purple-cloaked Netherworld Noble, a vein popping out of his forehead as he thought back to the hellish days spent as servant of that particular Demon Lord. "I vill not have you bringing up memories of those days, not that now I finally have the chance to become an Overlord!"

"What, so you couldn't take down Laharl? Had to run here with your tails between your legs because you couldn't even beat one of his VASSALS?"

"Silence, wretch!" roared Maderas, his cloak billowing about him dramatically. "I vill have you know that I am still levels above you in power! Although I may be, perhaps, only above-average in Netherworld Disgaea—"

"More like barrel-bottom."

"...compared against a Veldime chump like you, I can be considered a God!"

The burst of dark energy from the Netherworld Noble was enough to blow Adell back slightly, as the window rattled and the chandelier quaked. Several of the candles that had been sitting at the side of the room went out, their flames extinguished by the mere fighting spirit that Maderas had exhibited.

"However, I know you, Demon Hunter," said Maderas, looking calm once more. The vein that had been popping out on his forehead before had now receded, and again he looked like the picture-perfect duplicate of Dracula in demon form. "I've heard of your exploits from Etna herzelf. It seems you came up against a fake Overlord, and managed to defeat him. Even against the real Overlord Zenon, you managed to survive. Strength such as that must be the real deal. It would be problematic for me to deal with you at full power... So, I've devised a way to seal your power."

"What do you— Naruto!"

In a corner of the room that he hadn't been paying attention to before, was the bound and shackled vassal he had recently acquired. He was clearly unconscious, and if the bruises and blood was anything to go by, at least moderately injured. Judging by the amount of blood, however, his wounds seemed rather serious. There was no telling when he was going to wake up, or how much more damage he could take.

Adell turned to Maderas, anger burning in his eyes, and launched the attack that he had been holding back. A stream of fire flew out of his arm like a bullet, making its way towards the Netherworld Noble. Maderas avoided the attack gently, slapping the fireball towards the window, where it melted the glass and flew out of the window before exploding.

"MADERAS!"

"You zeem to have realized," said the Netherworld Noble smoothly. "That attack of yours was zignificantly veaker than your last one."

Adell growled. They were in a bad situation. Although Maderas was strong, normally he would have no problem beating his vampire butt into the ground. However, with Naruto there, he couldn't risk using all of his abilities for fear of destroying the boy from the inside, especially when he was injured already, whereas Maderas had no such qualms, and seemed both able and quite willing to pull out all the stops.

Before he could take a step, however, another dark burst of energy enveloped the room. Adell was pushed back several steps. This time Maderas was done with playing around. A low rumbling could be heard, and free-floating small pieces of debris hovered into the air and disintegrated slowly as they came in contact with Maderas's dark Mana. At the side, Naruto gave a pained scream as the dark energy pushed inwards on his body, the pressure seeping into his wounds.

"NOW, HAVE AT YOU!"

What followed was a flurry of attacks that resembled a machinegun in number and strength. It was all Adell could do to avoid the majority and block the rest, and each of the blocks he defended against sent shockwaves strong enough to break glass through the air and floors. He could see his unconscious and reluctant vassal convulse every time that they made contact.

If he wanted to save him, he couldn't defend himself.

Suddenly, just as Maderas was about to strike a blow that would've shattered his arm, a barrage of energy discs flew into the room, aimed towards the Netherworld Noble. Maderas called off his attack, and instead used his cloak to deflected the barrage out the window.

"Who...?"

"Obito!" cried Adell, gripping his arm.

"Yes, it is I, Lord Adell," announced Obito as he dropped down beside the red-headed Demon Hunter. Behind him stood the entire squad of Prinnies that had been sent on the mission, aside from the one that had been lost. Each of them held their machetes in their flippers, looking for the entire world like they were prepared to die. Which they were, really. When you were a Prinny, it was more or less in the job description. "Your orders?"

"Get Naruto out of those chains and out of here!" cried Adell, getting up from his defeated position. He was never one to give up on a fight, especially when others were watching. Now, with the Prinny Squad behind his back, he felt the fight returning to his limbs. "Move it!"

"Aye-aye, dood!"

The Prinnies lowered their bodies and charged, ripping the air as they went. Maderas screamed in fury as he enlarged his cloak, preparing to swallow each of them as they came. However, a flurry of energy discs stopped his attempt as they shredded the fabric of his cloth, sent by the Prinnies that had remained back. The charging Prinnies ducked under the tattered cloak, remaining straight on the path that lead them towards their fellow bound and captured vassal.

Adell did not let the chance go by him. He, too, charged forwards, taking advantage of the Prinnies' distraction to close in on the Netherworld Noble, flames surrounding his fist. With a cry, he drove the burning appendage into the vampire demon's face, sending him on a trajectory that would end up with him destroying what remained of his throne.

"I got him, dood, I got him!" cried the Prinny in the lead, who had lopped off the chains that had bound Naruto. The blonde boy slumped over, and would've hit the ground had he not been caught by another one. "Alright, doods, let's get out of—"

Before the Prinny could utter another word, both of them found themselves with spears through their chests. From the shadows of the pillars came three demon Ninja, armed with spears. In the lead was Ishirou.

"Dood, that's the one who took Naruto!" cried one of the Prinnies standing back, one of the ones that had used Prinny Barrage to defend their fellows from Maderas's attack. It also happened to be the same one that Adell had ordered to defend Naruto. "That Ninja!"

"Good... good vork, Ishirou," said Maderas, getting up from his position on the floor. Swiping some of the dirt off of his body, he cleaned his hair with his hands, removing the debris.

"Of course, Master Maderas," said Ishirou, retrieving his spear from where it had been lodged in the Prinny's body. "Although the members of the Prinny Squad are indeed powerful, they are nothing when one catches them by surprise. Especially not when one is equipped with the Longinus."

"Yes... The Longinus. It had been a ztroke of genius to zteal him from the Overlord's Castle and putting him to zleep," said Maderas, stroking his chin. The tattered remains of his cloak mended itself in front of their eyes as the Netherworld Noble's dark Mana infused into it. "The strongest spear in all the Netherworlds... You were a fool to oppose us, Demon Hunter. Now, call your Prinnies off, otherwise Ishirou will simply kill your vassal here and now."

The demon Ninja, along with his two companions, took up posts around the fallen Naruto. The two Prinnies that remained in the front took up their machetes, prepared to fight, as the three Prinnies that had stayed behind, including Obito, prepared for another round of Prinny Barrages.

Ishirou glared as one of his companions picked up the unconscious Naruto. He jabbed the Longinus to the blonde boy's neck, and a drop of blood ran down his throat. Although the Prinnies were stronger than him, and definitely outclassed the other Ninjas, they would definitely be able to kill the boy before the Prinnies even touched them.

"I've never heard of a person contending for Overlordship who would put victory ahead of just one useless, expendable vassal... This is your undoing!" roared Maderas. "CALL. THEM. OFF."

Adell scowled.

What the hell did he do now?

Maderas was definitely stronger than the Prinnies. The moment he called them off, he would doubtlessly massacre them, and with the disadvantage of not being able to use his full strength, they would be killed. The key were the Ninjas, especially the one with the Longinus. What chance did they have...?

A fair fight was his style, but this was hardly a fair fight at all.

* * *

Naruto woke in what seemed to be sewers, his body aching. It was starting to become routine, he found, to wake up with pain nowadays. First, the time he was summoned to the Netherworld as a result of that mentor-apprentice pact, and the second time he was kicked awake by that stupid-ass demonic ninja-wannabe. He groaned tiredly, and dragged his butt over to the side of the wall, where he sat down, chest-deep in stuff that was best not described.

His body hurt, but nothing felt broken. He was sure that Ishirou... that asshole, had dislocated at least a couple of his bones, and cracked a few ribs while he had been at it, too. Strangely enough, those areas felt perfectly fine now, except for the dull pain. He was in an unfamiliar place now too...

Where was he? How did he get here?

His musings were cut short by the powerful burst of demonic energy that he felt lance through his body. Swinging his head, he turned towards the darkness of the sewers. In the distance, he could hear something like the growling of a canine, and what seemed to be pawing on walls.

Against his better judgement, he followed the noise.

The first thing that he saw when he neared the source of the noise was a cage that he guessed to be larger than his apartment complex. The thing was huge, dammit, and the bars were wide. Wide enough so that whatever it was contained within had to be humongous, too, otherwise it would've been able to get out easily. The inside of the cage was dark, almost pitch-black, and the only thing he saw within was a large, moving shadow.

His unasked question was answered when he got closer.

"YOU REALLY GOT YOURSELF INTO QUITE THE MESS, HUH, KID?"

A deep, booming voice that sounded like something from a horror movie blew him backwards several steps, before he lost balance and landed in the sewer waste like a kid that had just been hosed. Getting back up and brushing himself off with a grimace, he turned to look at the spectre that had started talking to him.

It was a fox, stories tall. Its fur was red, but other than that it didn't look like a normal fox at all. The eyes were pearl white, with no pupils whatsoever, and there were black markings along its eyes like a person with too much make-up. Had he looked towards the back of the monster, he would've seen the nine tails that swished and lashed about in an agitated manner.

"Who... who are you?"

"THAT'S NOT IMPORTANT. WHAT'S IMPORTANT IS THAT YOU'RE MESSED UP, KID, AND BAD," said the monster. It shook its head in a manner Naruto could only describe as dejected. "IT'S AMAZING. I SPEND MY ENTIRE LIFE TRYING NOT TO GET INVOLVED WITH OTHER DEMONS, EVEN LEAVING MY HOME NETHERWORLD TO LIVE IN A FAR-OUT PLACE WITH NO OTHER DEMONS AROUND EXCEPT FOR A COUPLE OF FRIENDS, AND YOU MANAGE TO GET YOURSELF INVOLVED IN A FIGHT FOR OVERLORDSHIP OF ALL THINGS. GOOD WORK."

"Oh shut up, it's not like I meant to," said Naruto, looking upwards at the large demon fox. Well, he assumed it to e a demon, anyway. It knew enough about Overlords and Netherworlds for it to be anything else. "Where am I, anyway? Last I remember, I was getting my ass kicked by some random demon..."

"THIS IS IN YOUR MIND," said the monster with a smirk. "WHICH EXPLAINS THE STATE OF AFFAIRS HERE, WHAT WITH THE SEWER AND EVERYTHING. YOU MIGHT WANT TO CLEAR YOUR HEAD OF ALL THIS STINKY CRAP AND GET YOURSELF SOME GOOD MEMORIES, FOR ONCE."

"Hey, go screw yourself. It's my mind, so I'll do what I want," retorted Naruto, before looking around once more. "It's really my mind?"

"I'VE GOT NO REASON TO LIE."

"Well, that's kind of hard to believe, what with there being like a four story tall demon fox in here and everything," said Naruto. Had he been a bit brighter, or a bit less occupied about what was going on, perhaps he would've put two and two together and realized that the monstrous spectre in front of him was the scourge of Konoha. Unfortunately, however, he wasn't exactly the most observant guy in the world. "Who are you?"

"YOU'LL FIND OUT IN TIME. WHAT'S IMPORTANT RIGHT NOW IS THAT YOUR LIFE IS IN IMMEDIATE DANGER, AND THERE'S NOTHING YOU COULD DO TO STOP IT IF YOU STAY HERE," said the Kyuubi, looking upwards at the ceiling of the cage as though seeing something only he could see. "I'LL GIVE YOU SOME OF MY POWER, YOU'LL NEED IT. IT WON'T BE ENOUGH TO EVEN GIVE THEM A BRUISE, BUT IT SHOULD PROVIDE A NECESSARY DISTRACTION. NOW GO."

"Huh? How—"

Before he even had the chance to finish his question, Naruto was blasted backwards by the loudest scream he had ever heard in the world. The shockwave of the roar stripped chunks from the sewer walls, and even parted the waters. Naruto found himself flung backwards by the sheer force, until the cage and its inhabitant was nothing more than a distant speck.

The Kyuubi watched as its vessel flew back into darkness.

"...HOW DID I GET SHUKAKU TO TALK ME INTO SIGNING THAT FORM ANYWAY...? MORE TO THE POINT, HOW THE HELL DID I MANAGE TO FORGET ABOUT CANCELLING IT...?"

He sighed. It seemed that life after his sealing would actually be more chaotic, rather than less. How the hell did that manage to happen?

* * *

Naruto came to, and was struck instantly with all the pain that he had been missing up to this point. The broken ribs and dislocated bones had come back, and it was all he could do to keep himself from crying out. The shinobi training he had received for resisting pain definitely helped in that department as well. Gritting his teeth, he opened one of his eyes a slit to peek out into what was going on.

Prinnies. He could see Prinnies.

Hope soared back into his chest at full speed, as he realized what must've happened. Adell had come. The red-headed Demon Hunter had come to save him. Somebody that he had known for a couple of hours was somebody who had braved an enemy base to save him. It was unthinkable to Naruto, who was used to people ignoring him and cutting themselves off from him. He felt relief flood his tired bones, and the pain took a second seat to the warmth that filled him.

Wait... why was he being held?

What was Adell doing, crouching on the floor...?

What was Maderas...?

His eyes flew open as he saw the vampire demon raise his cloak high above his head, before it morphed into an axe that size of a pillar. The faux weapon glinted in the sunlight, before Maderas sent it downwards in a trajectory that would split Adell's skull. Time seemed to slow down for everyone, as a person who he had just started considering important faced certain death.

Red energy.

Not Chakra, it didn't feel like Chakra.

Mana.

That was the right word for it.

Red Mana filled his body, from the core. He could feel it spreading faster than the axe could fall, giving him strength, giving him power. He grit his teeth and clenched his fist, and he could feel his bones mending together, he could feel the ribs that had cracked repairing themselves. Nobody else seemed to have noticed, everybody was too busy watching Adell die.

"ADELL!"

With a scream, he gripped the arm that had been holding onto him. The ninja that held him – not Ishirou, somebody else – widened his eyes in alarm in a moment of weakness, allowing Naruto to pry himself out of his grasp. Hitting the ground with a thud, Naruto bellowed in rage and drove a powerful right hook into the Ninja's side, ninja-training be damned. The Ninja was not winded, although the surprise of the attack caused him to react much later than he would have normally.

The red-headed Demon Hunter watched the scene with wide eyes, before grinning. Turning to the side smoothly, he avoided Maderas's attack by a hair, before dealing a crushing blow to the purple demon's neck. The Netherworld Noble, himself distracted by Naruto's sudden awakening, had not been prepared for the kick, which sent him careening into a wall.

Without breaking rhythm, Adell screamed at Obito.

"TAKE HIM AND RUN!"

The Prinny captain replied without words, breaking into a run. Before Ishirou could even turn around, the eye-patched Prinny had Naruto in his grasp and was jumping through a window and hitting the ground. By the time Naruto was fully aware of his surroundings, he was in the clutches of flippers and moving quickly towards safety. Nothing else could relieve him further as he moved quicker and quicker away from the zone of combat.

Maderas roared at his Ninjas from where he crouched, having gotten back up the moment he had been kicked. Although he hadn't been prepared for it, he was no slouch when it came to fighting and constantly had his guard up. The attack had been damaging, but it wasn't enough to take him out. Not yet.

"TAKE THEM OUT!"

Ishirou moved without a moment's hesitation, following the trail of the escaped Prinny; his two companions followed shortly after, still slightly stunned by the ordeal but knowing when to follow orders. Longinus flashed through the air like a silver streak, wielded by the Ninja in the lead.

Adell's eyes hardened as he watched the unit move. Obito, skilled as he was, would be no match for three similarly-levelled units, especially not with one equipped with one of the strongest spears in the known multi-verse. And, as fast as a Prinny could get, Ninjas were amongst the greatest movers in all the Netherworlds, and would doubtlessly catch up effortlessly. Quickly, he gestured towards the remaining Prinnies.

"PRINNY SQUAD, GO AFTER—"

"No need, Adell!" cried a familiar voice, as a shadow swooped down from the roof.

Ishirou hit the ground with a thud, having been struck hard on the head by a metallic object. Before his two companions could react to what had just happened, they took hit the ground with bumps on their heads. The Longinus landed several feet away, the face on the spear still fast asleep. Taro brandished the ladle like a swordsman would his katana, facing the Ninja to keep them from getting away.

Adell sighed in relief; Naruto was more or less safe now. Taro had come just in time, and now the demon shinobi had lost Naruto's trail. Not to mention... with Naruto out of the way, there would be no problem with him releasing his full power.

Maderas's first indication something was wrong was when he felt the temperature in the room rise several degrees. Turning his head, he saw what was causing the change.

The flames that had been flickering about Adell's feet had now grown into full-on wildfires. The boy's hair, which had been calm and tame before, now flew into the air flickering like a flame. His eyes burnt with endless determination and a cold, white fire. The fire that radiated from his body was more than just an aura; it was a manifestation of his power and his element. The carpet caught on fire, quickly burning to ashes within seconds, and the flames jumped from carpet to furniture to draperies and everything. The wax on the candles quickly dripped down to nothing. The temperature did not stop rising.

Nothing was spared.

Maderas took a step back, and noticed for the first time his sweat. The heat in this room was abnormal; no wonder he wanted the kid out of here. No normal human could last under this sort of fire, they'd be burned alive.

"I hope you're ready..." said Adell, clenching his fists. The flames around him swirled even higher, if that was possible. The demon Ninja were starting to get worried, their guards shrank backwards. The Prinnies, on the other hand, seemed used to the heat. "You consider yourself a vampire, don't you? I'll burn you at the stake!"

With a roar, Adell charged, flames blazing in his trail. The Prinnies followed in his wake, taking up their machetes and bombs and entering the fray. Maderas and his ninjas replied in turn, although their confidence had been heavily shaken.

What happened next was a slaughter for Adell's side. The ninja, good with surprise attacks, fell quickly to the Prinnies, who were superior in every other way. Prinny Barrage after Prinny Barrage limited their movement, and once their wings had been clipped other Prinnies charged in to hack them to bits with their machetes.

Taro had decided to take Ishirou one-on-one. The battle was pretty even, considering Taro's higher level and Ishirou's possession of the Longinus, but soon after the battle began Taro started pressing the advantage with quick attacks and his super-human strength. Ishirou, although strong in his own right, was, as a Ninja, unused to pole-arm weapons, and quickly found himself being pushed back. The battle ended the moment Taro swiped the legendary spear out of the Ninja's arms. What came after was nothing more than bullying.

Maderas was having much less luck.

Punch, kick, throw. Every blow of Adell's felt like a sledgehammer upon his very being, combined with being thrown into an oven at full blast. Blood flew from his mouth every time a hit landed, and his cloak dragged behind him, too slow to even block, much less counter. Every punch felt like a meteor, and every kick felt like a comet. He couldn't hold up for much longer, and everybody knew that.

By now the fire had spread to the entire room, and was streaming down the corridors and pathways outside, consuming even stone and steel. It was an endless, aimless blaze, seeking nothing but destruction.

"Alright, I've let out most of my anger," said Adell, retreating several steps behind where he had been. Maderas, too tired and wounded to even think about escaping, slumped where he stood, coughing up black blood. "Let's finish this!"

"No, wait...! Pleaze!"

"The time for talk passed a long time ago! VULCAN BLAZE!"

* * *

Naruto slumped the moment Obito dropped him off on the forest floor as they stared out at the castle. Although his wounds had miraculously healed, he could feel the fatigue seep deeply into his body. Leaning his head against a tree, he looked over at the Prinny commander listlessly. The eye-patched demon was looking him over, checking the bruises and the blood, sighing in relief as he did so. Although there were a few wounds here and there, they weren't nearly as bad as he had first thought, seeing Naruto's prone form.

Taking a few band-aids from his pouch and slapping them on the more major wounds after disinfection – Naruto shrieked a little at that, the girl – the Prinny gave Naruto a once-over once more and nodded.

"You're in good shape," said the Prinny, and started rummaging through the pouch on his stomach; the one that all Prinnies carried around with them. Naruto wondered softly in his tired mind how they managed to fit everything in that little bag, before realizing that it was a question for another time. "All you need is some rest now. Here, have some of this."

"Cho... chocolate? Whassat gonna..."

"Don't try to speak," said Obito gently as he broke the brown delicacy into little chunks with his flippers. Opening Naruto's mouth, he nudged a piece of the candy into his maw, before taking a piece for himself. "Medicine in the Netherworld is all like this, made into the shapes and flavours of candy and other foods. Chew it thoroughly, you'll feel better afterwards."

Naruto did as he was told, letting his teeth come down on the chocolate softly. Although it tasted much as chocolate did in the human world, there was a slight medicinal flavour there that would've passed him by completely had he not been told of it. Letting the pieces flow down his gullet, he was pleasantly surprised at the amount of rejuvenation he felt. Although his wounds didn't close and his bruises didn't clear, he instantly felt a lot better.

"Wow...!" exclaimed Naruto, looking at himself in surprise. "This stuff really works!"

"Yes, indeed," agreed Obito. "Netherworld medicine is many times more effective than human medicine, considering what demons do to themselves all the time with their personality quirks and power. It's a simple case of necessity being the mother of invention."

"Why are they shaped like...?"

"Candy?" asked the Prinny, amusement clearly showing in his good eye. He waved a flipper. "Demons, although powerful, act much like children about the smaller stuff. There are many demons out there that refuse to eat medicine due to the bad flavour. Thus, the pharmaceutical companies Rosenqueen employs try their best to make their medicine as flavourful and food-like as possible, to keep the bratty Demon Lords and Overlords alive. Dead customers are bad for business, after all."

"That's pretty funny," grinned Naruto. "Are there any Overlords out there who died because they didn't take their medicine?"

"No, but there is one who died by choking on a pretzel."

"No way! Was he stronger than you?"

"Way, and yes, he was. Caused natural disasters to happen whenever he couldn't reign in his emotions. Happened where I was working too. One of the strongest Overlords in all the Netherworlds gone in a flash because he was eating too quickly, or at least that's what I heard," said the eye-patched Prinny, sitting down beside the orange-clad boy. "I didn't start working there until his son came into power."

"His son?"

"Supreme Overlord Laharl, son of King Overlord Krichevskoy. He's the master of our master," said the Prinny. "Basically, I'm the vassal of his vassal, much like you're the vassal of Lord Adell."

"Adell's a vassal?"

"No, Lord Adell is not our true master," answered Obito as he looked upwards into the foliage. A leaf fell by him gently, which he picked up with his flipped and threw once more into the air. "We're on loan right now. Master Etna lent us to Lady Rozalin, who lent us to Lord Adell. Although it is much better to be working under Lord Adell, who knows something about compassion."

"Oh yeah, I heard from one of your boys that you guys work twenty – Wow, what's going on!?"

The castle, from where they were watching, burst into flames. Smoke billowed into the air, and hundreds of demons began to pour outwards from the castle gates, some of them choking and coughing and others taking to the sky. Naruto was prepared to get up and run, but Obito put a flipper on his shoulder, calming him down.

The orange-clad shinobi looked towards the penguin demon.

"Don't worry. The fire is ours," said Obito. "It means Lord Adell was victorious. These demons without leaders... They're like chickens with their heads cut off. There would be no searching for vengeance, not when something stronger than their lord is still here. They'll disperse into the surrounding woods; we won't be touched."

Naruto relaxed, and looked back towards the scene. Headless Knights, Wood Golems, and Zombies ran from the blaze, some of the unluckier ones had been set on fire. There were Wood Golems here and there with half of their body burnt to charcoal, moaning in despair before the fire finally overtook them, and they fell to the floor and turned to ash. Zombies set ablaze ran to and fro from the castle gates, unsure of what to do, their minds having long since rotted. Even the simple idea of water defeating fire had fled their heads, and many of them didn't even notice the fact that they were aflame.

Mothmen and Spirits flew into the air, those that had been unlucky also wrapped in fire. Some fell as they ascended, and turned to dust on the way down, the wind not saving them from the eternal flames. Those who were intelligent amongst the Spirits cast Ice spells on themselves, exchanging short-term damage for wounds that would fry them given enough time.

The castle itself was crumbling, the fires having gotten to important construction points. Steel melted, girders bending and then breaking in half, and the roofs collapsed. Explosions happened here and there, where the fire reached gas mains, and only hastened the destruction.

"This... is amazing," breathed Naruto. He had never seen such destruction, not in the human world at any rate. If he had to be reminded of something, it was the stories that he had been told in his youth at the orphanage about the Kyuubi and the way it laid waste to Konoha before finally being taken down. "I had no idea Adell was this strong."

"He's stronger than you can imagine, right now anyway," said the Prinny. "But keep in mind that Adell is not the strongest demon in the world. There are much larger fish out there, ones that could destroy worlds with a flick of their wrist. I... have met several personally."

"That's... scary," said Naruto. There really was no other word to describe the kind of feeling he felt course through his body right now. To think that the world he had been living in was so small... To think that he had considered the Hokage to be the greatest force in the world. When compared to a natural disaster like this, he was sure even the Hokage was nothing. It didn't make him want to become one any less, but it did put things in perspective. No matter how strong you were, there was always someone stronger.

"It is," nodded Obito. "Ah, here they come."

Indeed, out of the wreckage swarmed several little penguin demons, looking none the worse for wear. Although their bodies were blackened with soot, they seemed perfectly fine and able. One of them, the one Naruto recognized as having attempted to defend him during his kidnapping, was hobbling on one leg, leaning on another Prinny for support.

Taro, his clothing too covered in ashes and grime, was smiling triumphantly as he held the spear that Naruto recognized as Ishirou's in his arms, looking over it carefully. Now that it wasn't being used against him, the orange-clad ninja could admire the ornate patterns and intricate painting, although the strange face-like ornamentation carved into the steel made things a little strange. Taro swung the spear around, testing its weight, before making a few practice stabs. Apparently happy with the way it felt, he slung it over his back with a piece of rope he tied over his chest.

Adell lead them, his body covered with small wounds, yet his clothing was immaculately clean, free of the dirt and soot that covered the Prinnies and his younger brother. His hair was wild, untamed unlike his normal appearance, having been blown free during the battle, and the steps he left in his wake smouldered a little before going out.

"Lord Adell! This way!" announced Obito.

"Oh, that's where you guys went!" grinned Adell as they came closer. Naruto felt the temperature rise as the Demon Hunter moved towards them, although it went back down to normal the moment he stopped. His hair dropped, resuming their normal position, and the steps he left stopped burning. "You alright, Naruto?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," grinned the orange-clad ninja, getting up from where he had been sitting. His wounds, although still there, didn't bother him quite as much as before. "You should worry more about yourself."

"Tough words for a guy beaten up by Prinny-bait."

"We take offence to that, dood," said one of the Prinnies who had been following along, the one who had Naruto's guard slung over his back. "Lord Adell... can we take a break tomorrow? This can be considered overtime, can't it, dood?"

Adell groaned.

"Fine, I'm not as bad as Rozalin or Etna when it comes to things like this," said the red-headed Demon Hunter. "But I do need that base finished up soon, so how about this? The moment you guys finish the base, we can all take a twenty-four hour break. Is that good enough for you?"

The Prinnies chattered excitedly, having heard the news. A full day's break! It was better than they had even expected! Lord Adell really knew how to motivate a squad of Prinnies, especially ones that knew Lady Rozalin and Master Etna's regimens.

"Alright, boys. Penguins," said Adell, smiling as he picked up Naruto, who protested, although his heart wasn't in it. Although his body did feel better, he wasn't quite ready to travel long-distance yet. "Let's pack up here and get back to base. We've gotten what we came here for."

Naruto couldn't help but feel warm as he heard the heartfelt cries of the Prinnies and Taro. These guys had braved an army and stormed a castle for him, when they only knew him for about a day at max. It was a different feeling, a strange feeling, but one that he had experienced quite a few times since he had met them. The word 'demon'... it didn't feel quite the same as it had before. It was hard to judge them as evil; especially when there were humans he knew who acted more like monsters than these little cuddly penguins.

"Oh yeah... Hey, you. What's your name?" asked Naruto.

The Prinny who had been his bodyguard in the woods, the one who was now slung over the shoulder of another, looked upwards at him.

"Me, dood?"

"Yeah. You're the one who was with me, right? The one who tried fighting off that chicken-butt ninja, and would've kicked his ass if he wasn't such a sissy," grinned Naruto, giving him a thumb-up. The Prinny brightened considerably, rubbing its neck with its flipper, obviously embarrassed. It had been worried about getting chewed out too! Today was a good day. "I'm gonna need to know your name, so I can thank you."

"Sure, dood! Call me Teddy."

"Thanks, Teddy."

"No problem, dood!"

"Um... I helped too," said Taro, raising his hand. Although he was confident in battle, when outside of it and confronted with strangers, he reverted back to how he was before he became Rozy's slave. "Can I get thanks too?"

"Yeah, thanks all of you," grinned Naruto. He was starting to feel sleepy... The fatigue that had been driven away by the chocolate was starting to come back. There was a hypnotic rhythm to the way that Adell walked as well; his pace was constant, and sleep-inducing. "Hey, Adell."

"What's up?"

"You're still going to help me get back to the Human World, right?"

"Of course," smiled the red-headed Demon Hunter as they entered the forest, walking slowly. There was no point in going at full speed now, not when there was no danger and they had the injured along with them. He was carrying Naruto in a piggy-back position, something he had done all the time for Taro and Hanako as children. It brought back memories for him, good ones. "I made a promise, and it's not my style to break promises. As long as you want to get back home, I'll try and help you out."

Naruto nodded sleepily.

"Hey..."

"Yeah?"

"You know," said Naruto, feeling himself drifting off. "Until I get back home... I wouldn't mind being your vassal..."

Adell grinned brightly as they entered the forest; he didn't need to reply. Naruto had fallen asleep right after he had said those words.

He had expected Naruto to be a burden, much like Rozalin had when he had first summoned her what felt like so long ago. Yet, much like Rozalin, he had revealed an unexpected side to him during dire situations. Although the boy was weak now, there was potential there completely different from the normal Good-For-Nothing's; he had felt it during that battle with Maderas, when the kid had radiated energy that had, approximately, increased his level by ten times.

He had no problems with the kid being his vassal, not anymore. Not when the kid seemed to honest, so out-going, and so easy to get along with. Although perhaps loud and a little self-centered, he knew at deep-down Naruto was a kid who was both true to himself and good at heart.

He reminded him of both Rozalin and himself.

Just a little bit though.

* * *

A small figure observed the wreckage from a cliff on the side of the clearing, looking down with disdain at the ruins of a once great castle. The fires had gone out already, long since extinguished as the pyromaniac who had started them left the area along with his entourage. At his side were two gigantic, hulking figures, wrapped in cloaks with red, glowing eyes.

"I never thought Maderas would be defeated this easily..." said the figure, child-like in both size and voice. Yet, his tone was definitely that of a mature adult, both strong-willed and knowledgeable. "I come here, expecting to wrestle control of this place and the Lance of Longinus from him, and all I see are ruins. Oh well, it matters not. We got half of what we came for."

There, in one of the hulking, cloaked behemoth's hands, was the battered figure of the Netherworld Noble known as Maderas. He was unconscious, his entire body almost burnt to cinders by ruthless and unforgiving flames.

"If Master Etna gives me permission... Perhaps I shall dissect him and add him to my collection," mused the figure to himself as he turned around. "Then again... She'd probably want to chew him out first, and by then there'd be nothing left of him we could use. Come, Sodom and Gomorrah. There is nothing left for us here. We shall return to base, and send him back to the Overlord's Castle. Tomorrow is a big day, we must clear out that Demon Lord in the nearby lake."

As the figure walked into the light, his medium-length purplish-pink hair was revealed, along with the piercing red eyes so characteristic of demons belonging to Netherworld Disgaea. Around his neck was a collar, and upon his body was a green robe reserved usually for researchers and mages. He was both.

Zombie Lord Aramis, vassal of Beauty Queen Etna, had arrived.


	3. Chapter 3: Training and Vassals

Disgaea: When Worlds Collide

By Random Writer 46

* * *

Chapter 3

Training and Vassals

* * *

It was finally done. After several weeks of non-stop work, something that the Prinnies were used to, the base was finally completed. Although it had taken longer than expected, what with the many Prinny casualties they had suffered during the Maderas incident, the remaining members of the Prinny Squad worked both diligently and fast, wanting to get their full day break as soon as possible. Naruto, finding himself with nothing to do as Adell and Taro assisted in construction, fell in line as well to help out, lugging lumber and steel where things needed to go.

Now, finally, it was done. A two-story, good-sized mansion. There was a basement, a dining room, rooms for Adell and him, and any other vassals that would follow. The Prinnies a large room full of bunk beds to call their own in the basement, which was something they rejoiced over. It was honestly rather hard for Naruto to believe the sort of treatment they constant suffered through under the hands of 'Lazy Rozalin' and 'Master Etna'.

Adell smiled as he admired their handiwork, standing in a small group outside of the mansion. They were down to four Prinnies now, Teddy and Obito included, due to an incident with gas a week earlier. But, with the Dark Hospital open, that wasn't going to matter very soon.

"Well, boys, we're finally done," declared the red-headed Demon Hunter. "First of all, we need a name for this place."

"Um, how about Holt Village II?" asked Taro, raising his hand. The boy had been diligent in his work as well, and whenever he wasn't working he was fiddling with the spear on his back. After the incident, he had gone back to Rozalin straight away, where he was told to look after Adell until the construction was complete. Although she would never admit it, Taro was sure that Princess was worried for his red-headed older brother's safety, something that made the cow-print boy smile.

"Does this look like a village to you, man? This is a secret base! It should have an awesome name," grinned Naruto as he put his hands behind his head. It felt good to see something that he had been working so hard on finally completed. "Nah, it should a name that's much cooler! How about… The Awesome Mansion of Naruto?"

"Dood, you're the vassal, not the boss."

"I'll be boss of whatever I want," cried Naruto as he struck a pose and stuck his finger towards the direction of the Prinny that had spoken up. "You show me a place without my name on it and I'll show you a couple of guys who need their asses kicked!"

"Whatever you say, dood."

"Do we really have to fight so early in the morning?" asked Adell, shaking his head. Indeed, it was rather early. About six, which was right after dawn. They had spent most of the night working on it; adrenaline and having the goal so close gave them the extra energy they needed to push it towards completion. "How about… Adell House?"

"Hey, why do you get to have it named—"

"Not bad," said Obito, nodding his head. "Simplistic, easy to remember."

"Um, I think that's great!" said Taro cheerfully as he raised his hand. "Everybody who thinks Adell House is a good name for the base, raise your hand! Majority wins."

Naruto sulked as he watched one pair of hands and four pairs of flippers rose into the air, as Taro and the Prinnies showed their support for their temporary lord's name. Adell smiled as the name was set into stone.

"Hurrah for Adell House, dood!"

"Well, now that's settled. Let's get to the Dark Hospital, we have Prinnies to revive, after all," said Adell with a gesture, and entered the manse through the main gate, as the other Prinnies and Taro followed behind. Naruto was at his side in an instant, unwilling to be left behind. "Oh yeah… After this, we'll get started on your training, Naruto."

The orange-clad shinobi beamed as he heard the words. Although he had willingly acknowledged himself to be Adell's vassal since the incident, to be honest his current level of strength was much weaker than even the second-weakest of his men. Thus, Adell had promised him training to try and get him up to the same level, even though it would probably take quite a while. The construction of the base had been Adell's main goal for a while now, and so his training had been put on the back-burner, now that it was done, though, they could finally get started on it!

Walking into the main corridor of Adell House, Naruto admired the construction. It was hard to think that it had been done mostly by peg-legged penguin demons, especially considering the level of detail put into the designs. Everything was perfect, and there was even water and electricity here too. He was pretty sure at least one of those Prinnies had a PhD in Engineering.

Soon, they found themselves in front of the infirmary room that had been dubbed the Dark Hospital. There, standing in front of the room, was a young woman whose name she did not give out. Her clothes were unorthodox and so was her staff, and every time Naruto saw her she had that same perpetually sleepy expression. He wasn't sure if her eyes opened up all the way, actually.

"Why, hello there, Lord Adell," said the woman pleasantly. "The Dark Hospital is finally open for business. Should we commence with a full healing?"

"That's a good idea," said the red-headed Demon Hunter. "Might want to revive all the Prinnies we lost in that fight too. It'd be better to have a full workforce again than barely anything at all."

"Very well, I shall get some new vessels ready. Please makes yourselves comfortable, I shall be with you shortly."

* * *

"What's going on here?" asked Naruto eagerly as he watched the woman inscribe a magic circle on the ground with her staff. A glowing pink line appeared wherever she touched. He was sitting on one of the beds in the infirmary, watching the proceedings with the curiosity of a cat. "What's she doing? Who is she?"

"She's a representative of the Dark Hospital, more or less an interdimensional order of medics and doctors," said Adell. "They're neutral in every conflict, and offer services to anybody willing to shell out the money. If you don't have one in your base and you're pretty serious about fighting… Well, you wouldn't last very long, that's for sure."

"Oh… Hey, what's that?"

The woman had finished drawing up the circle, and had dragged what seemed like the carcasses of about thirty Prinnies into the room. Their bodies were unmarked, but they were clearly lifeless; their eyes glassy with emptiness and their bodies falling forwards like puppets with their strings cut. The sight was rather bothersome to Naruto, who had come to consider the penguin demons much like friends.

"Prinny suits."

"Huh?" asked Naruto, looking at Adell. "Whazzat?"

"What, did they not tell you this before?" asked Adell, looking at him quizzically. "Prinnies are more or less the souls of human sinners trapped within Prinny suits, who work off their time in the service of people from all over the world. In a Netherworld, they usually work for low wages at exceedingly bad conditions, all so they can gather up enough money to pay Death for passage into the next world, where they await reincarnation."

"Wow… I didn't know Prinnies were so deep," said Naruto absorbing this new information. Although he had considered the penguin demons simple before, this new development changed things a bit. Inwardly, he wondered to himself how penguins so friendly could have been sinners in a past life.

Adell seemed to notice this.

"A lot of good people do bad things, you know," said Adell, crossing his arms as he waited for the representative of the Dark Hospital to finish with the Prinny revival. Although it was custom for members of the Dark Hospital to not reveal their names, sometimes it made it a little hard to address them. "I had a Prinny who reincarnated before who stole things in life to save up for his little sister's operation. Even though he had no choice… Well, Death judges harshly. There's nothing we could do about it. I heard even wilful mutilation of self is a crime large enough to get you to serve time as a Prinny, as well."

"Seems kind of excessive," said Naruto thoughtfully. "Wonder what Teddy and Obito did…"

"Best not to ask," said Adell. "Most Prinnies consider their previous lives to be… Well, not very becoming of them. A lot of them would rather just be considered Prinnies, and given the chance to redeem themselves. Would you see them differently if you found out they were mass murderers in their past life?"

"Yeah, you're probably right. Oh, hey. What's going on now?"

The woman had finished dragging the Prinny suits to several points about the circle, and was starting to chant in a language that seemed both unfamiliar and inhuman to Naruto's inexperienced eyes. The woman's hair started flying upwards, and her clothing too, as what seemed like an invisible wind blew at her feet. Light gathered around the magic circle, shining softly and illuminating the room.

"Just watch," said the red-headed Demon Hunter.

The chanting continued, and the light started shining brighter and brighter. Just when Naruto thought it couldn't get any stronger, the light died down, and suddenly twenty-something spheres of light appeared in the middle of the room, floating in mid-air. Naruto's eyes widened slightly, although he couldn't really consider himself to be shocked. After everything that had happened, from his coming to the Netherworld and becoming the vassal of a Demon Hunter who wanted to become kind of demons, his absurdity scale had been lengthened a bit.

The lights came down one by one, and entered the beaks of the Prinny suits. As the light entered and the beaks closed, the Prinnies blinked, getting up and dusting themselves off. Some of them even spread their flippers and yawned loudly, as though they had just gotten out of a rather long nap.

"…Are those… souls?" asked Naruto.

"More or less," said Adell. "They're concentrations of Mana, the energy that makes you… well, you. It gives you the power to live, gives you the power to exist. It's also the power that angels, demons, and humans use to fight. It gives us our abilities, and without them… Well, we wouldn't be much of a threat."

"Ano, ano," grinned Naruto as he bounced on the bed eagerly. The Prinnies had more or less all been revived now, and the representative of the Dark Hospital was now checking over the Prinnies that hadn't been revived, making sure their bodies were undamaged. "Does that mean you'll be teaching me how to use it too, huh, huh?"

It was awesome, in Naruto's opinion. He had seen what Mana had done, what Mana was capable of doing. If he came back to Konoha with even half the power that he had seen in Adell that day in the forest… They'd make him Hokage unconditionally, definitely! There was no arguing against that level of power. He wanted to set castles on fire too!

"Yeah," said Adell, patting Naruto's head gently. The blonde shinobi didn't say anything, although secretly he enjoyed the touch. Not a lot of people had been willing to come into physical contact with him back in Konoha, not unless it involved a beating, anyhow. "You're pretty eager. Wait till this is finished, and then we'll get to your training. Oh, Taro."

"Milk, big brother?" asked Taro, holding out a pan of little milk cartons. Naruto could see a ton of different flavours, from strawberry to chocolate and normal. "I went down to Rosenqueen for some refreshments. Oh, try this! I found a couple Unique chocolate milks in the Item World before we came here; completely forgot about it. You too, Naruto."

"Oh, thanks Taro. You sure you don't want one yourself? I know you love milk."

"Don't worry about it, Adell. I had a Legendary one just before I came, so I'm all pumped up now!" smiled the cow-print wearing boy. He nodded, before preparing to go on with his rounds. "I'm going to bring these over to the Prinnies. Since it's their day off and everything, I'm going to be super nice to them today."

He passed two of the cartons over to the pair, before continuing on with his rounds. Adell popped open the lid, before starting to chug it down like a maniac. Naruto, too, viewed the tiny bottle, before shrugging and popping the lid off as his mentor had done. He raised an eyebrow when he saw the brown liquid, which was glowing slightly. Looking over at Adell, who was still chugging, he shrugged once more and followed his lead, letting the milk run down his throat.

His eyes widened. The taste of the milk was like no chocolate milk he had ever had before. There was a rich flavour deeply ingrained within that reminded him of the highest quality of black chocolate, and the milky texture made him think of pastures and the cool breeze. Naruto found that he couldn't stop drinking; the milk was simply too great. Definitely the best he ever had.

"What—"

"It's a Unique item," explained Adell as he wiped his mouth with his arm. "Free of the imperfections that plague normal things, Unique items are basically perfect in every single way. Only Legendaries are stronger, and that's because they surpass perfection. You're gonna need to know this to go toe to toe against demons."

"Oh, so this is the world's BEST chocolate millk?" asked Naruto, as he looked at the empty carton, feeling a little sad. It had been so good, almost good enough to switch him from being a ramen fan. "Where do you get this?"

Adell smiled.

"The Item World. Don't worry, you'll get to know the place quite well," said the red-headed Demon Hunter. "The Dark Hospital is coming around now, get ready for a check-up. After we're done here, I'll take you to the Item World. It's where you'll be training."

Naruto grinned as he heard the news. Training, that sounded like music to his ears. He'd be stronger than a Hokage in no time, especially if Adell was the one administering the training! To think, that a series of events leading from his failure at the Academy would eventually put him on a path like this!

The healer looked him over several times, frowning at the state of his clothing as she patted him over. What little bruises and cuts that had not cleared up by now were fixed by a single touch from her fingers, and Naruto felt more and more refreshed each time. Soon, she moved onto Adell, who went through the procedure as though he had done it hundreds of times before, which he had.

After the examination, Adell stood up, beckoning for Naruto to do the same. The orange-clad boy looked at his mentor, grinning brightly, and Adell couldn't help but return the smile in kind. He couldn't really help it; he was weak against people who were both honest about their intentions and smiled freely.

"Come on, I'll show you the shops."

"Shops?" asked Naruto, looking puzzled. "What for?"

"Look at your clothing, it's all in tatters," said Adell crossly. "And your goggles are broken; it'd be better if you got some new clothing, something more practical. Demonic armour is many times better than human-made, after all."

"Hey, boyo, if you think you can tell Uzumaki Naruto-sama to ditch his orange—"

"I'm not telling you to ditch anything," said Adell, as they walked down the corridor towards another section of the base. Naruto wasn't privy to how all the corridors and passages worked just yet, not having seen the plans, but he'd get used to the place in time. It wasn't that big, after all, at least not as big as the entire Konoha civilian district. "It's just... Well, at your level you're going to need all the help you can get to even get to the Item General of an ABC Gum, so..."

"Lemme ask you a question, then."

"Shoot."

"Are you wearing armour?"

"Ha, are you kidding me?" smiled Adell. "When you're fighting at the level of a Demon Lord, armour isn't going to help protect you against an enemy strike. They'll just tear through you, armour and all. During times like that, you need to learn how to use your Mana to protect yourself, and... Wait, why do you want to...?"

"Alright then! I've decided! I'm not wearing any armour!"

Adell sighed.

"Well, at least change your clothing. Keep your orange if you want, I'm totally fine with that," said Adell as he scratched his hair. They turned around the corner, continuing down the passage. "Do try to keep a clean appearance, though. It's a lot less impressive if you jump into battle wearing nothing but a loincloth."

"Didn't know you were so big on appearances, and that would be pretty rad."

"I'm not, it's just that I've got a friend who's really detailed about this kind of thing," said Adell with a fond smile as he remembered the spoiled princess that he had taken care of during his journey two years ago. She had always bothered about the smallest things, from when his tie was crooked to when he burnt their food. Although annoying at the time, now that they were so far apart he was starting to miss her voice. "She'd kill me if she saw a vassal of mine running around wearing rags."

"Ooh, whipped, huh."

Adell ignored the jab as they entered the Rosenqueen boutique. Although nothing big at the moment, as he hadn't submitted any bills to the Dark Assembly yet requesting expansion, it was well-kept and clean, and there were already several Prinnies looking about the wares, trying to find something to buy. Prinnies, although notorious money hoarders, were also good at finding ways to waste their hard-earned Hell. He remembered the keychain craze a year ago, when half the Prinny Squad had filled their pouches with keychains. It ended when some yahoo put out a line of gunpowder keychains that were defective, and tended to explode at inopportune moments.

The Prinny losses were high that day.

Adell browsed through the wares carefully, looking for something that interested him. His shoes were starting to get a little worn, what with the constant burning and kicking and what not. He'd have to get himself another pair, and luckily enough he found a few that looked exactly like his old ones. Nodding happily, he brought it to the counter where male Warrior checked it out for him.

When he turned back, he was confronted with the Naruto's uneasy face, as the boy switched his gaze back and forth from the wares to Adell again.

"What's wrong?"

"Oh, uh..." muttered Naruto. He looked downwards. "I... don't have any money."

"Oh, that? Relax, I'll pay for you," said Adell, waving a hand around. Money wasn't hard to get in the Netherworlds, especially when you were at the level of a Demon Lord. He was used to buying equipment far stronger than the stuff sold in this store, anyway... He'd really have to win some of those Senators, or maybe ask Rozalin to propose the bill for him. "Get whatever you need. Weapons, armour, whatever. I'll foot the bill."

Naruto's eyes widened, almost tearing up. Adell was taken back by the expression, and wondered to himself hurriedly whether he did something wrong. By the time Naruto grabbed him and gave him a huge hug, however, he decided that he probably did something right. Patting the kid's head much like he had done with Taro when the boy was younger, Adell looked towards the Warrior clerk for help, though the Rosenqueen worker did nothing but smile and shrug.

It took several seconds for Naruto to regain his composure, getting back to where he had been and wiping his eyes. Giving Adell a huge grin, he ran towards the equipment section of the store.

"Emotional kid you got there, milord," remarked the Rosenqueen worker, who was filing out what seemed like an inventory form. Adell turned, and saw the playful wink that the Warrior gave him. The Demon Hunter, in return, gave an embarrassed smile.

"He's my vassal," said Adell, looking at where the blonde kid was shifting through a pile of swords, looking much as a child did on Christmas Day. "He's got a lot of potential, and he's a good kid."

"Not to mention it looks like you've already completely won him over, milord," said the Warrior with a knowing smile. Although he wore the headband customary of his class, the rest of his clothing consisted of an elegant suit along with tie. "Loyal vassals are important to have when you go off into battle, especially ones who you can trust with your life."

"Ain't that the truth. Your name?"

"Call me Alfred," said the Warrior, still smiling. "I must attend to the stock now. When your vassal finishes his selection, feel free to call me out. I am at your beck and call."

"Right, thanks."

"Not a problem, milord. It is good to see a lord who cares for his subjects. A very refreshing change of pace," smiled the worker, who set down the forms he had been filling out, gave Adell a small bow, and opened the door that read 'Workers Only', before vanishing into the dark doorway.

* * *

"I did say that you could get whatever you want... but... Isn't that a little too much?"

Adell watched as Naruto attempted to lug the huge backpack full of all the weapons that he had bought, as well as all the ABC gums that Adell had instructed him to purchase. Every couple steps the kid would drop the bag where he was sitting, sighing in pain. The kid had really gone the whole nine yards, buying at least two of every kind of weapon he had found in the store. Although the amount didn't even dent Adell's wallet, he did wonder where the kid planned on putting all that stuff, or how he was going to use it.

Sighing for the last time as Naruto dropped once again, the red-headed Demon Hunter walked forwards and retrieved the bag from his limp hands, hefting it over his shoulder. Naruto stared at the sight, disbelieving. The bag that he had been struggling with for so long had been picked up by Adell with one hand – Actually, considering that it was Adell, it really wasn't all that surprising.

"Come on," grinned Adell. "If I leave it up to you, it's going to take forever for us to get there. I don't see the point of so many weapons, though... It'd be better for you to stick with one. Nice clothes, by the way."

Naruto's orange jacket had been shredded during the battle at Maderas's castle, and now he wore a simple black T-shirt with an orange spiral design on the front, as well as a pair of orange shorts. Black boots completed the get-up, and the goggles that had been destroyed were now replaced by a pair of Foresights, specialized demon goggles, that Adell had lying around.

"Yeah... yeah," groaned Naruto. He had been a bit annoyed that there had been no adequate substitute for his orange jumpsuit, but whatever. What he was wearing was close enough for now. "Where is the Item World anyway? Is it kind of like the Netherworld, or the Human World?"

"Kind of... both and not really," said Adell. "An Item World is a powerful spell that brings to life all the spiritual aspects of an item. Does your Human World believe that certain objects can contain spirits?"

Naruto thought back on it. Although he had never been too sure about it before, there were accounts of things in his world that were told to have souls and spirits within them... Things like swords, and teapots. Although he was pretty sure the second one was nothing more than folklore; who stuck demon raccoons in teapots anyway?

"Yeah... I think I know what you're talking about."

"...Well, the Item World is hard to explain," said Adell, scratching his hair. "Just wait. You'll experience it for yourself. Ah, we're here. Meet the Item World Guide."

Finally, they came to the end of their journey. There, standing in front of them, was a woman who looked just like the one who worked at the Dark Hospital. Had they not had different coloured hair and wore different coloured clothing, Naruto would've have a hard time telling them apart. The two Prinnies that he had come to know were also there.

"It's good to see you, Naruto," said Obito, bowing slightly.

"Wassup, dood?" said Teddy, waving his flipper.

Adell nodded to the woman, taking a piece of gum from the bad that he was carrying. The woman looked at the gum several times, before nodding. As Naruto watched, the piece of gum disappeared in a flash of energy, and soon that same energy had created a portal in the wall behind her. The portal looked much like a whirlpool, a vortex of purplish-blue energy.

Adell motioned towards Obito and Teddy.

"You two will follow Naruto, but don't support him unless he's seriously wounded," said Adell. Naruto gulped at this comment, although he didn't comment. The trust that he had for the red-headed Demon Hunter had been forged through a combination of vindication and danger, after all. It wasn't a bond that could break so easily. Adell turned to Naruto. "Look... you know what. The Item World isn't a cakewalk. It's going to be only challenges and pain from here on out, but at the end you'll be a lot stronger for it. I think you can do it... But do you think you can do it?"

"For sure," said Naruto, his eyes burning with determination. There were two sources for his will, one being that this was the road he would have to walk if he wanted to even see Adell's back on the scale, and the other being that for once in his life somebody believed in him. "Just you wait. I'll be kicking your ass in no time."

"Good talk," smiled Adell, turning back to the Prinnies. "Obito, do you have a couple Mr. Gency's Exits?"

"Yes, I do," said the Prinny commander, taking the object out of his pouch. It looked like a button, one of those things that some of the ninjas back home used to detonate their explosive seals, thought Naruto. "I even have a couple Unique ones... Pity they're Exits."

"Good," nodded Adell. "I'm counting on you two to make sure Naruto gets out of there alive. Prinnies can revive at any time, but most humans and demons... Well, we're not so lucky."

Both Obito and Teddy nodded, and saluted.

"Understood, Lord Adell."

"Aye-aye, dood!"

"Oh yeah. One last thing," said Adell. "Before you go on, take one of these weapons. Just one, though. You don't want to waste too much time on diversifying yourself right when you start out. I suggest something simple, like a sword or a spear, but that's just—"

"What kind do you use?" asked Naruto.

"Well, gloves, of course. They're not the easiest weapons to use for a beginner, especially considering your enemies will have much longer range at the beginning," declared Adell, lost in his explanation. "But once you train with it enough, you'll get a better grasp of your Mana than if you use other weapons, but it's strictly for experienced—"

He stopped his explanation as a grin appeared on Naruto's face.

"Oh, why do I keep answering your questions?" thought Adell, smacking his forehead. "I'm guessing you'll be using the gloves, then?"

"Yep."

Adell set the bag down before rummaging through it. Quickly, he found what he was looking for and flung them towards Naruto, who caught them in mid-air. He found himself looking at a pair of fingerless black gloves, not quite what could be called weapons conventionally. Yet, for some reason, they radiated more power than any of the kunai and shuriken he had ever handled before.

He turned them over, and inspected the metal plates on the back. With no small amount of amusement, he thought back to the fingerless gloves that the Jounin around the village had worn. This was basically the same thing, which was why he had picked it out. Yet, he hadn't expected it to radiate this kind of power.

"Those are Hoodlum Gloves. You picked out a good pair," said Adell. "I sense some Gladiators in there... Not very strong ones, but they'll serve you well. Alright now, off you go."

Naruto nodded, and slipped on the gloves. Instantly, he could feel power flooding him. Warmth from his hands reached his body, and all the way to his core. Already, he felt a little bit stronger than he had been, and ready to kick some butt. He walked towards the gate, before turning back to the trio.

"Just wait!" cried the young blonde boy, striking a pose. "By the time Uzumaki Naruto-sama comes back, he'll be several times stronger than before! The Netherworld better be prepared!"

Without giving anybody a change to retort, he took a running start and leapt into the vortex without hesitation. The Item World Guide chuckled slightly to herself as she watched the boy enter; it had been a while since she had seen somebody so fearless as to run straight into an unknown portal for the first time. Adell smiled as well, before turning to Obito and Teddy.

"Heh... With his attitude, he'll be fine up till the tenth floor," said the red-headed Demon Hunter. "Go with him as far as he can. I have confidence that he'll be able to reach the fifteenth floor at least, although he could probably go higher. But don't hesitate to get out of there if there's anything he can't handle either."

"Understood, Lord Adell," said the eye-patched Prinny with a small bow. "By your leave. Come on, Teddy, let us go support Naruto."

"Aye-aye, dood!"

"Sorry about interrupting your day off for this," said Adell apologetically towards the Prinnies. "I know it's not really often that you get a chance like this, so..."

"Don't worry about it, dood! Ain't no big deal to me. I like Naruto, he's a lot better than Master Etna and Lady Rozalin, dood. Of course I'll help him get stronger!"

Obito smiled secretively.

"I, too, wish to see how far he can go," said the eye-patched Prinny, thinking back to when he had first seen Naruto. It had been at the fire a few weeks back, on the day that Naruto was kidnapped. He had accidentally heard their conversation from where he had been, and it had surprised him to no end. To think that a human from his own world was here... Perhaps this Netherworld was... "It's... interesting to me. His dream... I wonder if he can achieve it?"

Before Adell could inquire further, Obito gave a flipper signal to Teddy, who saluted and followed after him. They entered the vortex, never once looking back. Adell sighed as he watched them go, until they completely passed through.

Obito was a bit of a mystery even to him. Although he had gotten to know the Prinny over the course of the last few weeks, being the intermediary between him and the rest of the Prinny Squad, he wasn't too fond of giving out details about himself.

Oh well... What would he do with his newfound spare time? He couldn't go out to try and take down a nearby Demon Lord, at least not yet. He wanted at least two vassals as strong as the Prinny Squad before he did so...

Hmm.

Didn't Rozalin want him to call?

Oh crap.

* * *

The Item World was not what Naruto had expected, that was for sure. In fact, the moment he arrived he had to fight the urge to rub his eyes at the absurdity of it all, before realizing that what was in front of him was completely real.

Yellow light streamed in from the sky, except there seemed to be no sun. No source of light whatsoever. Clouds floated in the air way above them, moving and shifting slowly as normal clouds did. It was almost rather scenic, had it not been for the truly strange part; the floating land he was standing on. All around him, hovering in the air, were floating islands of different sizes, elevations, and shapes. What surprised him even more was the variety in the sort of terrain that existed on the islands.

He was standing on grass, but the island right next to him consisted of sand. There seemed to be a snowstorm going on there as well, as well as a blizzard on the next island over, which was covered in snow. Naruto could hardly believe his eyes.

"It seems you're familiarizing yourself with the paradox that is the Item World," noted a rough voice from the side. Naruto turned his head, and his eyes came upon the two Prinnies that had been sent to support him. "...This is a tough, troublesome place. Look below the islands."

Naruto did so, and almost jumped. At the bottom was more or less nothing. The darkness below stretched into eternity; even the light from above could not reach the depths at the bottom.

"Do you realize?" asked Obito. "This is an insane place, where you will be tested to the limits. If you fall into the abyss, your life is forfeit. Although Lord Adell approves of you and believes in you, I will not be swayed until I see more of your worth in combat. You have one last chance to get out of here... One that I am offering. Will you take it?"

On the flipper was the object that Adell had called a Mr. Gency's Exit, whatever that meant. Its silver button gleamed seductively, as though asking to be pushed. Yet, without even a moment's hesitation, Naruto turned his back on the object.

"I see. This is your answer," said Obito, pocketing the device once more, and then turning to face Naruto. "May I ask why you go to such lengths to attain power? It isn't everything in the world, you know. Lord Adell does not require his vassals to do such reckless things, I should know myself. He is kind for a lord."

"I know that," said Naruto, clenching his fists. "I'm not stupid."

He looked upwards into the golden sky, and his hands relaxed. The goggles on his forehead that took the place of his old ones – Adell had called them Foresights – gleamed softly in the brilliant light.

"He's the first one who ever believed in me, you know," said Naruto, who turned about to face the Prinnies. Obito saw the fire in his eye, something that reminded him so much of himself when he had been younger. "He's the first person who ever said I can. He's also the first person to ever come to my rescue. He believes in me, so I'm not going to betray that trust. I'm going to pass his expectations, exceed them! I'll show him that his trust isn't wasted on me!"

For a second, Obito could swear that he saw a golden aura shine about him, although it disappeared in an instant. Perhaps it was simply a trick of the light...? No, he had seen the boy's Mana during the confrontation at Maderas's castle. It had been red, he was sure. Shaking his head, the Prinny cleared himself of frivolous thoughts.

"Those who believe in Uzumaki Naruto get rewarded!" cried Naruto as he pointed his finger at the sky in what he thought was a rather dramatic pose. "That's my Ninja Way!"

"Interesting, but right now you're not a ninja," said the Prinny. "You're a vassal. A vassal to a man who's contending for the title of Overlord. What's more important to you right now, being a ninja or being a vassal?"

At this, Naruto stopped for a second, his eyes wide. He had always thought of himself as a ninja, even if he didn't pass the test. The profession had always been so right for him, and it lead him on the path towards the only thing he thought he would ever get a chance at getting recognition for, the title of Hokage. Yet... to be a vassal, was it so bad? He had recognition here, and even friends. Above all else, he had somebody who treated him like something, who obviously thought he was important.

He found himself as a crossroad, with no idea where to go.

He had no answer.

"Don't worry too much about it, you don't have to answer so quickly," said Obito as he slapped a flipper down on the boy's shoulder. "I know it's a hard decision for you. Give it some time. Give yourself some time. You're not going to last long in the Item World with a clouded heart."

Naruto nodded numbly.

"Speak of the devil, dood," exclaimed Teddy, who had been silent the entire time the conversation had been going on. He pointed his flipper his flipper at the other islands. "Here they come, dood!"

Demons started to appear out of the shadows of the islands. Mothmen filled the air as Orcs and Zombies marched from their hiding places out into the open. They stared at Naruto and the two penguin demons hungrily, angrily.

"The Residents... They are here. A combination of the flaws within both you and in the item, given form by magic. Destroy them, and you'll find yourself becoming stronger with each kill," noted Obito. "From here on out, it's your game. Show me your worth, and make Lord Adell proud."

Naruto cleared away his clouded mind. Although he still had no answer at this point in time, he wouldn't let it get in the way of his fighting. Gripping his fists, he jumped off the island, preparing to meet the enemies in combat.

"Oh yeah, did Lord Adell mention that gloves increase speed, dood?"

"Well, no one can say that he doesn't know that NOW."

Naruto picked himself off the side of the tree he just smashed into, before going back into the fray. The rosy tinge that coloured his cheeks betrayed his emotions completely.

* * *

Three days ago, Naruto had been declared dead.

Twenty three days ago, Naruto had gone missing.

Now, he was legally dead.

Iruka sighed into his hands as he stared at the book he was looking at without really reading it at all. Twenty days ago, in the Academy, where he was supposed to be safe and under his supervision, Naruto had vanished without a trace, and now he was dead.

No matter how many times he repeated it to himself, it didn't sink in.

Naruto certainly didn't feel dead, he knew the blonde boy too well to see him just giving up and dying. Wherever he was right now, Iruka was sure that he was trying his hardest to get back home. There wasn't even a body, for God's sake. How could somebody be declared dead if there wasn't even a body, that's what he wanted to know. Konoha's system was just like that, though. With all the shinobi running around in this world, if you weren't seen for twenty days, chances were you were lying in a ditch somewhere with your head cut off.

Iruka couldn't see Naruto like that though.

Not that he was actively trying to.

He sighed once more. The Hokage had given him a temporary reassignment since then, citing 'stress' as one of the reasons that he had been given a break and told to arrange the old archives in the Hokage's tower instead of continuing his work at the Academy. Mizuki had been reassigned as a full-time teacher, now that he was working over here. He couldn't... he couldn't deal with his kids now. Not after losing one of them, without even knowing where he was or what his condition was like. He couldn't face them.

The reason Umino Iruka never made Jounin wasn't because of his skills or lack of talent. Although he wasn't a genius by any means, he was an exceptional taijutsu and weapon master, most adept in the use of kunai and wires. His talent was nothing to scoff at either, having been one of the rookie teams picked out for the Chuunin exam back in his day, and at another village too. No, the reason Umino Iruka never made Jounin was because of his reluctance to kill, which was an important part of most Jounin missions, and because of his terrible case of guilt and conscience, something that surely would've drove him insane if he started being assigned assassination missions.

Jounin were not well-adjusted people, Iruka knew that. It was the reason he wasn't nominated for the Jounin exam, because he was a normal person, as much a ninja could be, anyway. Although he didn't mind, really. He had more fun teaching the kids in the Academy, watering and feeding the seeds that would become towering trees that upheld the Will of Fire.

But now that he had once again lost somebody close to him, he wished he had gone through that Jounin emotional training course, just so he could hold back the crushing waves of guilt and depression.

His hand brushed by a nearby book, which he peeked at over the top of his arms, raising from his defeated position.

"The Biography of the Fourth...? Heh..."

Irony at its finest. Here he was, moping about his student and trying to forget about it at the same time, this book just happened to appear, reminding him about his student's dream which he might or might not accomplish. Ever. His mind was in a huge mess; chaos was strewn about his cranium. Perhaps a read would get him in more proper shape.

Flipping the cover over, he read through the first passage.

"Although the Yondaime of Konoha is perhaps one of the most well-known heroes of all time, there are many aspects of his life that did not pass into common knowledge... The Yondaime, real name Namikaze Minato, was an orphan from a nearby civilian village who was picked up after an unnatural flood... He was born with what seemed to be a mutation... pointed ears?"

Hidden within the book was a wealth of information that Iruka had never known before, including the fact that the Yondaime kept the true colour of his eyes, red, a secret with the liberal use of contacts and genjutsu, or the fact that apparently he had trouble mastering normal ninjutsu techniques, yet was easily proficient with difficult ones he made up himself yet others could never copy. There was even a recorded incident involving a Sharingan-wielding Uchiha defector who had been brought down by him... A Jounin versus Chuunin, with the Jounin losing! Not to mention the Jounin had access to one of the greatest Bloodline Limits in the world, and he lost...

He had, apparently, been unable to read Yondaime's chakra. Another Hyuuga branch member found out later as well during the Jounin exams, when he had tried to view his inner coil systems in order to shut them down. All he had managed to see, described by him, was a golden haze that had covered his inner body workings, allowing the Yondaime to beat down the man, who found his secret clan techniques rendered useless, at will.

The pointed ears, although strange, could be explained as a rare mutation; there were plenty of those in the world after all. The red eyes were rare as well, but red eyes were especially common in Konoha, with many Uchiha clan members taking wives who bore them children with no Sharingan but with natural red eyes. The Yuuhi clan was such a branch, but the Uchiha did not consider them important enough to annex, considering the only trait they kept was the red eyes and a tendency to gravitate towards Genjutsu. The golden haze and the strange jutsu Iruka attributed to a rare Bloodline Limit, perhaps lost forever considering that the Fourth had left the world without a heir.

Yet, it was near the end of this book that Iruka found the most shocking of revelations.

Prior to the Yondaime's grandest conquest, the one that would forever push him into folklore and history, the sealing of the Kyuubi, there were reports that the Fourth would often stare into the air before vanishing in a flash of purple light. He would return soon after, with a smile, explaining that it was a new jutsu that he had developed and was still trying out.

Purple light.

The same kind of thing that reports said had happened to Naruto.

Could it be...?

Iruka gripped the book, jumping out of his chair and preparing to look for the Hokage. He had found a clue at last. Hoping against hope, Iruka ripped open the door, unsettling the many papers and books on the shelves, sending pages flying into the air, and slammed it behind him as he ran out into the corridor.

He missed the passage at the end of the book, where it described his words prior to leaving the Hokage's tower before he sealed the Kyuubi, when he had been talking to the Sandaime, when he had explained why he was the only one who could seal the beast.

"_The Shiki Fuuin isn't a technique for sealing demons, Sarutobi-sensei. It's a technique for sealing beings similar to yourself... Nobody else in the village has blood like mine."_

Had Iruka been a bit more thorough in his reading, perhaps he would've found something that would've changed his view on the whole book. After all, a book was often also judged alongside the author.

The Biography of the Fourth, by the Netherworld Recorder.

* * *

"He's getting a little better now," said Obito approvingly, as he watched Naruto engage in battle with the residents. The orange-clad boy had gotten used to the speed boost that the gloves had afforded him, and was now bouncing around from island to island duking it out with the other beasts. "It's a big of surprise to me, considering that fact that he's human. In my experience, humans don't improve this fast."

"That's true, dood," said Teddy. "But there are exceptions, y'know. I heard, some time ago, that Lord Laharl came across a human who had the potential to become as strong as an Overlord, dood. He went back to his home Human World before he realized it, though."

"Captain Gordon, eh?"

"Yeah, that's the one. Strong as a demon, dood, but I heard he's eccentric too."

"Hmm... Too bad I was out on a long-term errand for Master Etna during that time," noted Obito as he scratched his beak with his flipper. "Heard quite a bit of wacky stuff went down around that time; I even managed to miss Lord Laharl's coronation too."

"Yeah, but... it might've been a good thing we missed it, dood. Fighting is good once in a while, but I'd rather not get blown up twenty-four seven, dood. It's true that we can get revived, so it's all good, but still..."

Block. Block. Punch.

Blocking two arm strikes from a nearby Zombie, Naruto grit his teeth and drove his fist into the chest of the monster. The rotting corpse flew back several feet, and fell into the abyss as it succumbed to gravity. Naruto took several seconds to recover, breathing deeply, before turning his gaze to the sky once more. Several Mothmen in the air had already started their attack, flapping their wings and dropping some sort of powder in the air. Naruto knew by personal experience now that touching that dust was the last thing he wanted to do, which meant that approaching head-on was out of the question.

Bending down, pumping power into his knees, Naruto blast off towards a nearby island, ricocheting off a tower that was situated on it. Bouncing towards the Mothmen from another angle, he gripped one of the monsters by the wing and executed a flipping kick towards the head that knocked it out cold.

The Mothman started falling into the abyss, unconscious, and Naruto, who by now had expended all of his momentum, pumped his knees once more and shot off from the Mothman's unconscious body, speeding up the demon's descent into darkness and allowing him mobility in the air once more.

With a cry, he engaged the rest of the demons, arms moving wildly and legs shooting out like bullets. Within seconds, the rest of the Mothmen had been defeated in mid-air, where they claimed superiority, and Naruto was bouncing off the last corpse and towards a small group of Ghosts on the side, which had been firing off spells at him.

"It looks like he's levelled up a bit, dood."

"Indeed, he has definitely gotten stronger," said Obito. "Well... He will have to be able to do at least that much if he wants to get to the Item General without relying on our help."

The last of the residents fell, and soon enough Naruto was at their side, panting slightly and with several superficial scratches on his skin. His clothing was only slightly ruffled, being of demonic origin and thus able to take hits easier. Looking upwards at the pair of penguin demons, the blonde shinobi scratched his head.

"There we go, I'm done," said Naruto. "What now?"

"Tend to your wounds first," said Obito, throwing him a couple pieces of gum. Naruto caught the objects in mid-air and stared at them oddly, before remembering what he had said before about medicine, and peeled the wrapper off one before popping it in his mouth. "That's ABC Gum, the weakest of medicines out there. But it should be enough to tend to your wounds, since you haven't sustained very many. You're very fast, which makes you better at dodging than most. But most Ninja are."

Naruto chewed on the candy slowly, remembering what Obito had said before about the path that he would have to take. He wasn't sure which one he wanted; he wasn't sure if either one was what he wanted as well. Was it possible for him to be both...? To be both a shinobi and a vassal at the same time?

Well, like Obito had said, this wasn't the right time for pondering. He was training right now, and it was never a good idea to train half-heartedly. Being distracted meant a higher chance of injury, especially when your training partners were live monsters who had no qualms about ripping you apart and feasting on your entrails. Naruto felt his wounds close, and removed the piece of gum from his mouth before chucking it into the abyss and watching it fall.

"Well, where to now?" asked Naruto, turning back to the pair of penguin demons. He had taken out all the monsters he had seen on the neighbouring islands. Each and every single one of them were either lying with their heads cracked open on the floating islands, or were somewhere down in the abyss they'd never be able to crawl out of.

He was stopped by Obito, who put up a flipper.

"Before we go anywhere, I must explain to you some of the intricacies of the Item World," said Obito, before lowering his flipper once more. "Before we begin, how much information do you know about the Item World?"

"Well, I know that it's created by a spell, and that it's got something to do with the thing we used to get in here, and that's about it," said Naruto, crossing his arms. "What are we doing waiting around for? I wanna get to where we're supposed to go by dinner time."

"Don't be impatient. Your information is partially right," said Obito. "The Item World is a manifestation of the item's character, more or less. It brings to life all the flaws within the object, and allows you to defeat them, letting you gain experience in combat as well as absolve the object of flaws, which makes it better. The flaws become Residents, the monsters you were killing off earlier."

"So, if I kill Residents, the weapon gets stronger?"

"Very simplified, but basically correct," said Obito. "But... there are three more types of monsters living here in the Item World. They will get more and more common as we head to the later levels, so it's best to tell you about them now."

"Well? Spill the beans. What are they?"

"Haste makes waste," said Obito, waving him off. Reaching into his pouch with his flipper, he took out an entire blackboard, which had Naruto widening his eyes. The eye-patched Prinny gestured over to Teddy, who complied by taking out several pieces of chalk from his own pouch. Obito drew several diagrams on the blackboard, before turning back to Naruto. "Alright, look. We have four different kinds of creatures here in the Item World. The face over here – the neutral-looking one – those are the Residents. They make up the bulk of the Item World, and as a rule they are always hostile. Take them down whenever you can, to gain both experience and to make the equipment the Item World belongs to better."

Then, with pointer he had taken out of his pouch, he tapped at the face next to the neutral-looking one. This one had a smiley face – or what looked like a smiley face anyway; Naruto knew now that Obito couldn't draw to save his life.

"The smiley face here represents Innocents; they are the true residents of an Item World. In a weapon that is truly perfect, something that is theoretically possible but highly improbable, an item would consist of nothing but Innocents. They are the representation of the crafter's will, and the stronger the crafter's will, the stronger the Innocents are. If you kill an Innocent, you will weaken your item, but this rarely ever happens because Innocents are neutral, sometimes even friendly, and will never attack you willingly. There are Innocent Towns throughout the Item World, where Innocents live. You can heal, buy things, and even go to the Item Assembly to strengthen the object. You won't have to worry about that for now, though."

With that said, Obito turned to the next face. This one was also neutral-looking, much like the first one had been, but there was something about the lines that suggested strength.

"These ones are Specialists, always for them first. You'll know who they are because they're the only ones, other than Pirates and outsiders like ourselves, to attack Residents," explained Obito. "To put it simply, Specialists are much like Innocents, being representations of the crafter's will, but they are not bound to weapons. Specialists, all of them, are warrior-types and serve the strongest. If you defeat them in battle, they will serve under you willingly unless they feel you don't deserve their service any longer, when they will leave. Defeat them in battle in the Item World, and they'll move from the object into your body."

"Wait! Into my body!?"

"Yes, or more specifically, your Mana," explained Obito. "It's not as strange as you think. The Specialists move into your Mana flow, where they'll strengthen you in different ways, depending on their type. The rarest and most prized of all are the Statisticians and the Managers. Statisticians allow you to grow faster, and Managers increase your Mana capacity. You'll see more of them as we go, so don't worry too much."

"Alright..." said Naruto, as he thought about it. "So you mean, if I defeat a Statistician in battle, and then he moves into my body, I'll be able to learn things at a faster rate?"

"That's the idea."

"Awesome!" grinned Naruto, as he thought about it. If he got enough Statisticians in his body, he'd be able to get twice as kickass, twice as fast! There had to be some catch to this... "Are there any backsides to having Statisticians?"

"You mean Specialists, and no," said Obito. "Once they start serving you, there are no drawbacks. However, the hard part is actually getting them to serve under you. Specialists, on average, are ten times as strong as the average Resident in an item, which means you probably won't be getting an Specialists, not for a while at least."

"Damn," said Naruto, his thoughts of attaining Adell-like power through gathering a mass amount of Specialists into his body went down the drain. "So, is that why you demons are so strong? Because you have access to Specialists?"

"Well, partially, I suppose," said the Prinny, as he moved his pointer towards the last face. This one was malicious-looking, and had an eye-patch, sharp eyes, and devil horns. "But before we get off the topic, I have to tell you about the last of the creatures you'll encounter here in the Item World, and also the most dangerous. In the case we encounter these, both Teddy and I will help you. As you are, there is no chance whatsoever of you defeating a Pirate."

"Pirate?"

Naruto cupped his chin, lost in thought as images of swashbuckling men with long, twirling moustaches invaded his mind with their peg legs, hats, bandanas, talking parrots, and plank-walking. Shaking his head and dispelling the strange thoughts, he turned towards Obito.

"So, what's this about Pirates?" asked Naruto. "They don't sound so scary..."

"You'll be surprised," said Obito. "Pirates are the scourge of the Item World. They're Residents and Specialists gone bad; forming gangs on Item World travelling ships that can go from Item World to Item World. The chances of coming across a Pirate gang are low, but it does happen about once in ten times, so it's not impossible. Their strength – remember this, and remember it well – can range from the level of a Specialist, to beyond even Lord Adell's level."

Naruto gulped, suddenly realizing what sort of danger he was in. If there were Pirates out there even stronger than Adell, then there was no way the pair of Prinnies acting as his bodyguards would be able to fight back against them.

"Don't worry," said Obito. "If Pirates that strong were to appear, then we'd use the Exit right away. There will be no threat to your life."

Naruto nodded, his worries fading slightly. Although they weren't completely gone, they had dispersed enough so that he couldn't feel the choking sensation in his gut anymore.

* * *

Iruka ran like he had never run before, charging up the stairs of the Hokage's tower. The tower itself was a good ten floors high, and he was afraid of bumping into people if he went at his max speed, so he ran at the pace of a civilian, narrowly avoiding hitting several people as his feet screeched against the floor.

The Hokage's tower was as much a maze as it was an office building; the place had been built to be nigh-on impenetrable by those who weren't familiar with its systems, a sort of cautionary act against invaders. To tell the truth, though, it really didn't do much considering that most of the time during invasions the Hokage, the one who was supposed to be protected by the system, was usually out on the front lines. However, the systems were apparently rather effective at repelling enemy spies.

Iruka found himself on the seventh floor, a floor devoid of workers, when the figure appeared in front of him, blocking his way. Iruka stumbled momentarily as he looked upwards at the silhouette.

The seventh floor was traditionally kept very dimly lit, as there were many ancient scrolls here with ink that faded when viewed under harsh light; it was a storage area for ancient relics, weapons, and other things that were of interest at one point in time. Thus, Iruka could hardly tell whether the figure, hooded and cloaked as it was, was a male or female.

"_Umino Iruka..." _said the figure in a gravelly tone.

It seemed he was male after all. Iruka didn't care too much about it, however, he was in a hurry. Cloaked figures weren't all that rare in Konoha, being a ninja village and all. Trying to raise his foot to continue on his way, Iruka found that he couldn't. His eyes widened.

"_That book thou found... Forget about it," _ordered the figure. Iruka looked upwards at him, and felt a chill settle in his spine. _"That which thou read was not meant for human eyes. Forget about it this instant, and never speak of it to anybody else."_

For the first time in ten years Iruka felt as if he was dealing with something completely out of his imaginations. The last time he had felt like this was during that A-class mission he had been sent on with his Chuunin team... it was on that mission too that both of his comrades had been slain and he had forever resolved to become a teacher, to make sure his students were ready for the real world before sending them out. Cold sweat appeared on his skin, and he reached for his shuriken holster, only to realize it wasn't there anymore.

_Clack._

Iruka turned his eyes upwards, only to see that the holster he had been looking for had appeared in the man's hands. The hand that poked out of the cloak was both pale and slim, completely at odds with the voice it was connected to, which sounded like something that would come out of the throat of a stone God. The cloak billowed about the figure, and Iruka caught the glimpse of heavy chains underneath the black material before it vanished out of sight once more as the cloak came down.

"_Stand thee down, Umino Iruka," _chided the figure gently; well, about as gently as an angry tiger, anyway. He examined the holster for a short amount of time, before tossing it to the ground, where the button came loose and several metal armaments spilled out, making sharp noises as they impacted on the wooden floor. _"This one is the Netherworld Recorder, of whose book thou have read. Said book is... one not meant to be comprehended by humans. Forget about it, and thou shalt be released from thy current predicament."_

Iruka screwed up his courage, and bit out a retort.

"I'm sorry... but something like that is impossible!" cried out the Chuunin instructor, as he tried his hardest to break free of the unnatural hold that had locked his arms and legs. He was frozen in a battle ready position; the only part of his body that he could move was his head. He gripped the book he was holding in his hand for dear life. "This book holds a clue to where my student has--!"

"_Thy pupil," _announced the voice. _"Has gone to a realm no human, especially one of this world, should ever seek to enter. But worry not; thou shall meet in due time. Give me that book and forget about it, Umino Iruka, and I shall free you from my Stillness and never enter thy sight again. What say thou?"_

A realm no human should ever seek to enter?

Iruka's eyes opened wide as the words came to him. Images of all sorts of danger befalling Naruto... things that he should never have to imagine about his student filled his mind. All of the scenes culminated in finality; death, the only constant in the world of shinobi. Although he had never received Jounin-level emotional training, he knew enough about the human mind to know that this path lead to madness. Clearing his brain of thoughts involving his student in dire straits, he glared at the man in front of him.

It was clear that there was something... not quite human about him. In a room sealed like this one, there was no way his cloak should be billowing about like that. Judging by the size, thickness, and the way that the chains under his cloak were wrapped around him, the man under the cloak must've been wrapped in at least a couple tonnes of iron, and the pure fact that the man could speak and move about at all rang alarm bells in his head.

There was also the unnatural darkness that covered his face.

Of course, Iruka knew much about hoods. It was commonly worn by shinobi all throughout the Elemental Countries who wanted to conceal their identities, and were usually seen on Nuke-nin. Even in Konoha, there were times when hooded individuals would walk the streets, avoided by the normal denizens of Konoha. Iruka had seen a couple for himself, and always cautioned his students to avoid those kinds of figures.

But this hood was different; there seemed to be no light at all underneath. Instead of feeling as though he was staring into an enclosed space with a head contained within, Iruka felt like he was staring into the night sky itself; vast and empty and infinitely black. The figure shifted its weight several times, and the hood moved with his head. Each time that happened Iruka could swear that he saw stars and moons within the shadow of the hood, but each time the lights vanished right after, leaving Iruka with the feeling that he was staring into a mirage.

Iruka shook his head, and focused on his own bodily functions, ignoring the almost cosmic being in front of him for now. Calming his heart, lowering his pulse, and halting his sweat for a second, he opened his eyes once more and gave the figure one of the most determined glares he had ever given in his life.

He was a shinobi, for God's sake. This was something he could deal with. Superstitious wasn't a word included in his dictionary; there was no way the thing in front of him was anything but a man. There had to be a logical explanation for this; for everything.

First, the hold covering his body; a jutsu of some sort, perhaps. Probably Genjutsu, and if the enemy was a Genjutsu user it would explain the strange phenomenon going on with his hood as well. However, with the way that his body was frozen, there was no way to dispel the jutsu with a well-placed Kai. He would have to screw up his courage then, and challenge the Genjutsu directly.

The book at his side; the Biography of the Fourth. It was the book that he wanted; perhaps he was a spy or outside agent then...? But what would be the purpose of trying to steal a book that was nothing more than a biography? Iruka cleared his mind once more. No, this wasn't the time for musings and ponderings. He had to focus on the what instead of the why.

The figure shook its head.

"_No... thou needs not to speak. I already know thy will," _said the figure. _"Thou leaves me with no choice then, but to wipe your memories and take the book from thou with force."_

Iruka's eyes widened as the figure slid forth, as though floating in mid-air. Reaching one pale arm towards him, Iruka could see the energy – it wasn't Chakra for sure, it didn't look a thing like Chakra, nor did it feel like it – swirling about in his palm... The hand came closer... Ever closer... Almost touching his forehead—

"_Thy will is strong... However, against me... Will is nothing."_

His life flashed before his eyes. Clichéd or not, there was no denying that's what happened. Images of his dead parents fighting against the Kyuubi... Images of his humiliation during his years at the Academy. Everything that had ever gone wrong before in his life appeared before him, and everything that had ever gone right as well.

White lines shot out of his head, moving towards the palm, streaming like water. He reached into his mind, searching for things that weren't there anymore. He felt his feet lift off into the air, as he relinquished control over all aspects of his body, his face looking into the sky. Parents...? What were they...? Shinobi... what was that...? Naruto?

Naruto?

Energy swirled up around him, gathering into him, calming him. The image of the blond-haired, orange-clad boy that had been fading... It was now completely lucid, and clear. Clear enough for him to see his grin. Clear enough for him to remember what he had been doing.

Clenching his fists like they were gripping a lifeline, he ripped his eyes open, and glared into the hood of the figure in front of him. The figure, whose stance had suggested boredom, suddenly snapped to attention, realizing that the herbivore he had been hunting had finally been pushed into a corner. With a strangled scream completely uncharacteristic of normal shinobi, Iruka drove his fist into the side of the figure, before being bounced back several feet and landing on the ground, clutching at his fist in pain, the book gripped tightly under his armpits.

Iruka got up to his knees, staring at the monster in front of him. The white lines that had been absorbed into his palm were starting to reappear, making their way towards Iruka. The lines entered his head, and all of a sudden he felt clearer than ever. His fist ached; it had felt like hitting steel.

There was no question about it now; he could not win.

If the enemy was a ninja, he was definitely beyond Jounin level. A body that felt like steel, an ability to take away one's memories, the ability to hover, and a jutsu that froze people on the spot. Some of those techniques had been theorized, but had proven to be impossible by many shinobi. If he wasn't a ninja... Well, that just made things worse.

Gritting his teeth, he brought his hands up. He wouldn't be able to escape, that was almost for sure. His holster was on the ground away from him, which meant there would be no long-range attacks coming from him. He was rusty after years away from battle, and most of the jutsu that he had used in the past were now beyond his level, and even if he did manage to use them again there was a good change that he had forgotten many of the hand seals.

Just as Iruka was about to fight back, however, something strange occurred.

The book at his side started radiating light, rays of white spilling forth from within. Iruka's eyes widened as he watched, and the hooded figure seemed taken back by the phenomenon.

There was a flash of white light, and Iruka, along with the book, was gone.

The Netherworld Recorder took off his hood, looking at the spot where the Chuunin had vanished. His cloak halted around him as he stilled his power, having no more use for the Mana he had been summoning. His face under the hood was... almost normal-looking, had it not been for the pointed ears and the permanently closed eyes. He frowned as he glanced towards where the book had been.

He had been fully prepared to take that man's memories... and yet he had stopped him somehow. There was no reason he should've been able to react during conditions like that, especially not when he had already begun the extraction process, but somehow he did. The human, Umino Iruka, had done something none had done before when faced with the power of the Recorder; he had managed to overcome him.

There was no way a mere human who had never even heard of the Netherworlds before could've even had a chance against him... That lead him to only one conclusion.

His voice came through softly and clearly, completely different from when he had been using his power; the Netherworld Recorder's power. His energy had long since died down now. He was nothing more than a normal demon once more.

"...To think the Tome of Desires chose a human..."

* * *

Naruto's hand ripped through another demon, bursting through his chest like a bullet. Before letting the demon have a chance to gasp, however, he put his leg up to its chest and kicked, letting the demon fall into the abyss, trying to gasp for air fast enough for his punctured lungs to hold. He failed, falling into darkness.

They had gone through three stages now, and Naruto had quickly realized how it was that demons got so strong. The Item World run was more than a test of power, it was a test of stamina to fight through ten stages of enemies, mental fortitude for the long road ahead as well as keeping cool under pressure, and skill for minimizing damage as the attacks came straight on. The gum that Obito supplied him with healed his wounds, but they did nothing to combat fatigue and shortage of breath. This pace was unbelievable, but even more unbelievable to him was the fact that he was still holding on.

Although he was considered one of the ones with the highest stamina in the Academy class, this was on a whole different level. Whereas the instructors expected them to run a full twenty laps around the school every day in under four minutes, this world expected him to go toe-to-toe against about a hundred enemies each time he went up a level. Having battled against almost four hundred enemies now, Naruto found that he had long since exceeded the point where he thought he would collapse from exhaustion, as if something inside him was coming out.

He had never felt the level of extreme exhaustion he had on level two, when he had been surrounded by about fifty of those log-like monsters. They had come at him from all sides, some even trampling on their allies to get to him, and after beating a stage and then going through half of another he had felt ready to collapse. His sweat was staining the t-shirt Adell had bought for him, and his fists felt like they were coated and filled with lead.

He had watched them come closer, as if in slow motion. As the thin limbs of the monsters came down on him, he had fully expected either to be saved by Obito and Teddy or to die.

Neither had happened.

His fist, as if reacting somehow to the danger outside, had swung upwards like a cannon, dealing the arm of the demon a nasty uppercut. The limb had torn off the monster like a wrecking ball had impacted against it, and the monster had given a shriek of agony. Before Naruto knew what he was doing, he had launched into a frenzied rush, using his hands to tear into the monster. It didn't matter that the bark was hard and that his knuckles were bloody; at the end he had taken down fifteen of them in the space of twenty seconds, and the rest were inching towards him a lot more cautiously.

From that point on, his exhaustion seemed to disappear as he entered into the fight with a new determination. His arms swung faster, his legs moved smoother. In fact, he could even swear that his eyesight was becoming clearer, and his body a lot more reactive as he fought. Certain times he even felt the world slow down slightly, as if his entire body, mind, and consciousness had gone into a higher gear.

The Prinnies watched as their charge back-flipped off a monster and landed on another, dealing it a backwards kick that launched it into a tree, shaking the leaves and cracking its cranium. That Jack-o-Lantern would never be the same again.

"He's moving faster now," said Teddy, in awe. "Dood. He's flying."

"Amazing speed," agreed Obito, crossing his flippers. "He is progressing much faster than we had expected. At this rate, he might even be able to reach the Guardian without our help at all."

"Yeah... strange though. Humans shouldn't progress this fast in the Netherworld, especially considering he's alive, dood," said Teddy as he looked thoughtfully onwards. They both knew what he was talking about; humans simply did not work well with demonic training tools. Prinnies, being containers for human souls, suffered similarly to a degree, although due to the fact their bodies were of demon origin the effect was much less. "He's growing... and he's not stopping."

"Incredible indeed," said Obito. "I had my doubts, but it seems Lord Adell has picked a great vassal."

They watched as Naruto dealt with the remaining monsters, his fists flying like a hailstorm of bullets. Within seconds the rest of the monsters had been destroyed. A chunk of the island broke off and fell into darkness, as Naruto watched. He hadn't been the one to do that... It had been a Headless Knight that had been aiming for him; had he taken that shot, his neck would be off by now. He stared firmly into the abyss, the figures of the monsters he had sent scrambling were still visible.

Although he didn't look towards the Prinnies, he knew it. There had been one too many close calls for him, and never once did they move from their position. They would only move if an enemy clearly superior to him arrived... Otherwise, he was pretty much on his own.

Naruto knew he should feel angry, but he didn't.

He understood; that scared him.

The thrill of battle, near-death experiences, the pain when he got hurt, and the satisfaction he got for dealing crippling blows to his enemy. His body and mind thirsted for it. He could feel his rhythm speeding up all the time, shattering his previous viewpoint time and time again. His reactions were not planned out, they were there without him asking for them, twitch reactions he had no control over. There were times when attacks came from places he had no business sensing, yet he managed to react anyway without even realizing it.

He felt something in him grow... Something... quite different from humanity.

He relished it, and yet feared it at the same time.

Shaking his head and clearing his thoughts once more, Naruto turned to the pair of Prinnies. Seeing his face, they nodded, and Obito close his good eye. Within seconds, the Mana from the fallen demons had gathered together and formed a vortex in the middle of the air, swirling about. Naruto looked into the air, and found that he could see the next stage. Except... something was different.

"What are those things?" asked Naruto, pointing into the air.

"Geo Symbols," explained Obito. "Powerful concentrations of Mana, they affect the areas around them in a certain radius, depending on how powerful the concentration of Mana is. There is no way to tell what the effect of a Geo Symbol is, not until you enter the area. You see that green mist?"

"Yeah," nodded Naruto. There was a green mist surrounding the green Geo Symbol, which was shaped much like a miniature pyramid. Maybe it was simply his eyes playing tricks on him, but the monsters that entered the mist seemed to be moving... slower.

"Although we can't be sure... It appears that Geo Symbol is a speed down symbol. That means anything that enters will have its speed cut down severely; not simply speed but everything that controls the body," said Obito, glancing towards Naruto. "You must be careful. Enter that mist, and although you'll think everything is normal, you'll actually be acting much slower than usual. Although, those who are in the mist as well will be affected similarly, so at close range it doesn't change much. If they start attacking you from a distance outside, while you're inside..."

"...I'll get wasted, right?" asked Naruto, looking upwards at the next stage. "I'll be fine. Just gotta be careful."

Obito shook his head.

"Well, if you are confident," said the Prinny. "Go ahead."

Naruto nodded, and jumped into the portal headfirst. Teddy and Obito looked at each other momentarily, before following.

It didn't take long for Naruto to finish that stage as well, shredding the monsters like they were paper. There was a close call due in part to the Geo Symbol, but once he had smashed that (Geo Symbols could be destroyed), he had completed the level without a hitch.

It went like that for several more stages. If there was a swarm of monsters, Naruto destroyed them in a flash. If there was Specialists (and there were), Naruto took his time in taking them out; strong as they were, they were also fast enough to catch and damage him.

It was not until the eight stage that shit hit the fan.

Naruto looked out over the islands, clucking his tongue in annoyance. Almost all of them were covered in mists of several colours, and the worst part was that he couldn't see any visible effects on the monsters inside. The previous ones had all been obvious; monsters with bulging muscles, monsters that moved faster. These ones were subtler. Yet, it wasn't really anything dangerous; an annoyance, more like.

Just as he was about to jump into battle, however, he was stopped.

"Look out, dood!" cried Teddy, charging him and bringing him to the ground. Just as Naruto was about to yell at him for doing something so unexpected however, a large energy beam sailed over his head harmlessly and hit a nearby island.

BOOM.

Naruto turned his head, wide-eyed, to looked at the target of the blast. Or, what remained of it at least, which was not all that much. The island, struck by the force of the blast, had more or less disintegrated into bits and pieces, and flew around murkily in space before dropping into the abyss. An entire island, gone. Just like that.

He felt a jerking motion, and realized he had been pulled up. Obito looked him in the eye, before glancing towards the sky. Naruto followed his line of sight, coming across what seemed to be a flying ship.

"Pirates... what rotten luck," murmured Obito, although it was clear for all to hear. Taking the button out of his pouch again – the Mr. Mency's Gate or whatever – he poised his flipper to press it. "We're getting out of here. Don't worry about it, Naruto, you did good."

Naruto nodded, looking once more upwards at the ship. There was a band of white-haired demons on the vessel, and he could see them looking down at him. They held an assortment of weapons, all kinds. Here was an glowing, green-yellow axe; there was a black sword with two prongs. It was clear they were far beyond the level of the monsters he had been taking down, and probably stronger than the Specialists as well. He wasn't scared, however, not with Obito and Teddy there.

"...Damn..."

Naruto turned to look behind him, at the source of the voice, only to come upon the sight of the Prinnies looking at each other worriedly, before gazing at the button. How come they didn't press it yet? Naruto didn't know. His answer was made clear a second later when Obito put the button back into his pack.

"Rather annoying... There's a Geo Symbol around here forbidding the use of teleportation," said Obito, his Prinny brow furrowed. It would've been rather humorous, had Naruto not suddenly felt as if he had been thrown into a vat of ice water. "Stand down, Naruto. We'll take care of this one. You've done enough."

"Right, dood," said Teddy, looking upwards. The ship was coming down now, and appeared to be landing on an island close by. "My sword arm's gettin' a little rusty, dood. Time for a Prinny workout."

"Hey...! Are you guys going to be alright? These guys might be stronger than Adell!"

"We say that," said Obito. "But the chance of it is very small. There's also another way for us to get out of here without having to deal with the Pirates. You've done it yourself in several of the levels."

"It's a Geo Symbol doing this, dood," said Teddy. "You know what that means."

"Break it, and we're home free," said Obito. "Hide yourself, Naruto, and don't engage the Pirates even if it's the last thing you do. We don't know their level just yet. Let's go!"

Without another word, the Prinnies took off, blasting into the air with at least thrice the speed Naruto could do himself. He watched them charge towards the separate islands, destroying the monsters on the way with their machetes and barrages, searching for the Geo Symbol, before shaking his head and turning backwards.

If they told him to get some distance, then he would. They knew this place way better than he did, after all.

* * *

The Prinnies hopped from island to island, looking for the Geo Symbol. The monsters they encountered were of no problem to them, weak as they were. Nothing more than ground meat against the might of their machetes.

The Geo Symbol they were looking for, it had to be clear. A Geo Symbol that affected a whole world without a mist of any kind was of the strongest kind; it had to be bigger than the rest, at any rate. As long as they found it in time, there should be no problem.

Obito narrowly dodged a gun shot from behind him, and turned around to fire off several of his Prinny Barrages. The slicing energy blades cut through the woods of the floating island, cleanly dodged by the following pirates. The Prinny narrowed his one good eye. These Pirates were of a higher class.

Settling down on an open patch of land, he waited for the three pirates after him to show up. They did, white hair and unkempt clothing marking their class as Criminals. Each one of them held a separate weapon in their hands, each of them equally deadly. A sword user, a gun user, and an axe user.

"An Outsider..." grinned the one in lead. He was clothed slightly differently from the others, sporting a scarf that billowed out behind him. "It's been a while, hasn't it boys? You're trespassing on our property here... We're going to have to collect a fee. You can pay it in Hell, or in blood."

The other two, the gun user and the axe user, moved upwards, chuckling darkly. Obito gripped his machetes tighter, and focused, keeping his concentration at peak point. The moment he got distracted was the moment they would attack. Pirates were like wolves in this way; natural predators.

"I never thought the Ambling Pirates would've stooped to claiming territory on gum," said Obito in a nonchalant voice. "But I suppose you are the lowest of the Pirates after all. This might even be a step up for you."

They scowled, eyes darkening. Without warning, the one with the gun raised his hand. Obito ducked to the floor, dodging the bullet as it whizzed by over his head, its power and speed enhanced by the demon's Mana. His reflexes were good... Although not as strong as he was, these Pirates were at a similar enough level for it to be dangerous in a three-on-one fight.

With a cry, the eye-patched Prinny leapt into battle, charging towards the Ambling Pirates. The three Criminals took up their weapons, and the two with the axe and sword did so in kind, dashing towards the oncoming Prinny.

"C'mon, boys! We'll show this punk Prinny what the Ambling Pirates are all about! Are you two, underlings of I, the great Siegfried, going to take this insult lying down!? Have at you, sinner!"

He could hope Teddy would be able to find the Geo Symbol before trouble escalated.

* * *

Teddy himself was having his own troubles, as two Ambling Pirates cornered him against the wall. He held a single machete in his flipper, watching and waiting as the two white-haired demons drew in closer. They both held spears, weapons that definitely had a greater reach than his little butcher knife did. The fact that he was cornered and outnumbered also weighed heavily against him.

"Hehe, brother," said the larger one, who had several scars on his forehead. The spear he held was one that Teddy did not recognize, but it radiated dark energy, and purplish-pink liquid seeped from its blade. Being hit by that would definitely be dangerous, and more likely than not poisonous. "We'll be having penguin stew tonight. Hehehehe!"

The smaller one, who was smoother and less ragged looking, looked at the larger one in disgust. The spear he held was three-pronged, which made it more of a trident. Had his face not been drawn into a tight scowl, perhaps he would've been considered good-looking.

"That's disgusting, Sigmund. Prinnies are nothing more than rough cloth and Mana woven together into the semblance of a penguin. I'd rather eat paper," said the Ambling Pirate. "I have nothing against you personally, sinner, but this is Pirate policy. You wander around on our territory, you've signed your own death warrant."

"Hehehehe! Penguin stew! Penguin stew! Sigurd! Penguin stew!"

"Have you heard nothing I've said, Sigmund?" groaned Sigurd. He held up his spear, and the larger one did the same. They inched forwards closer and closer, and Teddy felt as if his nerves could burst at any moment. "Goodnight, Prinny."

The spear strike was blocked; Teddy had known it was coming. The trident was tricky to block, simply deflecting the blade wasn't enough. If one's weapon was caught in the prongs, the fight would soon become a nightmare for the one with the lesser range, which was Teddy in this case. The Prinny had struck at the base of the blade, near the part where the bar ended, and had managed to redirect the attack towards the wall that stood at his back.

Sigurd swore as his trident lodged into the rock, little pieces of debris flying out. He struggled to pull it out, and finally did so in a shower of rock, but by that time it was too late. Teddy struck, stabbing at his abdomen. Sigurd avoided the blow narrowly, twisting his body about and giving a return strike at the same time, which Teddy deflected once more. Both combatants hopped backwards, leaving space in between.

"EHEHEHE! PENGUIN STEW!"

Teddy barely had time to avoid the spear swing that had come from behind him, ducking it by the skin of his head as the spear impacted against a stone pillar nearby. The pillar was wrecked instantly, snapping in half as the force of the spear collided against it. Teddy knew spear forms, and this was no spear form. There wasn't a semblance of martial arts in this man, Sigmund. This was the wild strength of a berserker. Strong and uncontrollable.

But... that was a weakness too.

"GYAAAAAHHHH!" Sigmund cried, as he cradled his stump of an arm. Teddy hit the ground with a soft thud, landing cleanly on his peg legs as he balanced the single machete he held. His other machete laid a ways away, having been knocked from his flippers by the attacks of the pair.

"Sigmund!" cried Sigurd, looking at his partner "Get up, there's no time to—"

"He's right, dood," said Teddy, jumping at the hulking behemoth of a Criminal. His machete flashed through the air like a trail of lightning, and for a second remembered his past as a human. His flippers on the machete, for a second, felt like his hands on that old, rust-stained sword of his. "Dood, I'm not done with you yet!"

He flipped over the air, and landed on the other side of the Pirate, putting his machete at his side where sheath would've been had he still been human. For several seconds, nothing occurred, before several large gashes opened up on Sigmund's skin, which caused him to let out a bloodcurdling howl.

"Teddy Style: Prinny Showdown, dood!"

* * *

It was a hard fight, for sure.

The axe-user, whatever his name was. He had been nothing. Obito had taken him out in the three minutes at the beginning of the battle, and that was the end of that. The other two, particularly the one who called himself Siegfried, was another story however.

"Hmm, I have to commend you for taking out Siggeir," said Siegfried with a smile. He hadn't blinked an eye when Obito had vivisected his comrade in a horrific display of swordsmanship, and when the body fell to the floor and dissipated into Mana he had simply continued charging head on. "However, he was the weakest of our division of the Ambling Pirates. I'll have you know that even without Siggeir, Sivard and I are more than capable of taking you down. That axe fool simply got in our way."

"Less talking, more fighting," bit out Obito, dodging a bullet and blocking several sword strike at the same time. It was hard, fighting this dark two-pronged sword that Siegfried held. Every time the sword came close to him, he temporarily forgot what he was doing, which messed with his mental state something harsh. Although he was never a fan of bantering in a battle, this battle made it impossible for him to even do something as simple as that. And the paralyzing bullets that the gunner, Sivard, shot. One of them had lodged itself in his right leg, which was now numb.

He had expected adversity, but this was on another level. Their weapons were dangerous, made to kill through the usage of underhanded tricks like poison and amnesia, but such was the way of demons. Obito had gotten used to this kind of fighting style since he had been human in his previous life, so such a fighting style was nothing new to him.

No, their effectiveness was.

He was being controlled by the bullets, and his attention was effectively divided between the two. Siegfried attacked him constantly, hounding him like a stubborn raptor, never letting him have a second to assess the situation. What was truly amazing, however, was the way they worked together. Even without looking, Siegfried seemed to know exactly which direction Sivard's bullets would come from, and reacted accordingly.

Obito was fighting a losing battle, and he knew it. Unless he pulled out and did a trick or two they weren't expecting, he wouldn't be able to win. No news had come from Teddy's side either, so chances were he too was in the midst of battle.

The standard Prinny techniques wouldn't work. These guys knew the limitations of the penguin suit body, and took advantage of it at every point. The bodies of humanoid demons were flexible and strong, whereas the Prinny was awkward and clumsy. First, however, he had to make his chance...

There.

CLANG.

The twin machetes struck out against Siegfried's sword, surprising the Ambling Pirate leader. The blade flew into the air, before landing a short while away. It was the chance that Obito had been looking for; and he thanked the heavens for a second before dealing a harsh peg-leg kick at the Criminal's face which would leave a red, circular mark for a long, long time.

Several bullets flew in from the side, but since half of the combo had been taken out already, these bullets felt no faster than in slow motion. Obito avoided them easily, tilting his head.

There was a short period of time in which Obito hopped backwards, and Siegfried ran to retrieve his sword. The bullets didn't stop coming, but time and time again they were easily avoided by the eye-patched Prinny.

They stood against each other, now clearly separated. Obito stood on one side, grasping his machetes, and the two remaining of the Ambling Pirates stood on the other. They glared at each other, and Obito dropped his machetes.

Thunk, thunk.

They entered the packed and dry earth as though it was nothing more than soft soil, and the Ambling Pirate duo looked at him oddly, before Siegfried burst out with a harsh laugh.

"Hahaha! So, you've given up then, Prinny? That makes it much easier for us!"

Siegfried gripped his sword in what was clearly a special stance. His body was almost completely turned away from Obito, although his eyes were clearly glancing at him. His blade stood at his eye level horizontally, and the scarf around him billowed with the gentle caress of the Mana gathering at his hands.

Obito watched as Pirate charged forwards, and knew without seeing that a hailstorm of bullets was following right behind him. Without a word, he closed his good eye and flew through a series of flipper seals.

Remembering how it had felt when he had been alive, when he still had a chakra network flowing through his body, he channelled his Mana in the same way. The pathways that had once been there were brought back momentarily by the surge of demonic energy. The Mana flowed through the pathways like a network of aqueducts, and soon enough it had reached the right place; his throat.

He opened his eye, locking on his target. Siegfriend, and Sivard who was definitely behind him. Opening his beak, he gave a cry that reminded him of his previous life as a shinobi of the Leaf.

"Obito Style: Prinny Grand Fireball!"

From his beak, still open, came a fireball three boulders high and three boulders across. The flames burned with the fury of the sun and glowed an angry, demonic red. Siegfried had no time to even give a scream before the fireball mowed him down, leaving nothing but ashes, and melted all the bullets that came after into molten slag. Obito could see through the fireball that Sivard had noticed the attack coming, but did not manage to react fast enough, eventually sharing the fate of his leader.

Obito dropped to his knees (or the peg-leg equivalent), and breathed deeply. It had been a long time since he had attempted something like that, and Mana, although much stronger than Chakra, was also infinitely harder to control. The fireball, although perhaps ten times as strong as something he would've been capable of during his life, had not bent to his will. Raising a flipper, he felt at the edges of his beak. They were charred black. The Prinny Grand Fireball wasn't something he'd be attempting again soon.

Three done... He had seen six on the ship. That meant the other three were probably with Teddy. He'd have to find him soon; although perhaps he wouldn't be able to pull off his coup de grace anymore, it was his duty as a commander to look after his comrades.

Something that he hoped Kakashi had learnt since the last time he saw him.

* * *

"Sigmund, Sigmund! SIGMUND!"

The remaining member of the Ambling Pirates crowed in anger as he chanted the name of his deceased comrade over and over again. Teddy dodged the attacks as best he could, but they were coming at him incredibly fast; faster than anything a Criminal should've been capable of. His speed was almost at a Ninja's level, which was really saying something.

A normal Prinny would've been hard pressed to defend against the onslaught, but Teddy was no ordinary Prinny. He was a fighter, a warrior trained by the most horrid master in the known Netherworlds, Master Etna. He was a Prinny Squad member, and if he failed against this guy, she would definitely cut off his head. Then revive him. Then cut it off again. Maybe throw him in boiling lava.

Long story short, he could not afford to lose this fight. Oh, and Naruto's life might have hung in the balance too.

Teddy deflected attack after attack with ease. The strikes were coming faster and faster, yes, but the Pirate had lost his composure with the pain of loss. The strikes were telegraphed, and the Prinny could read them easily. With a quick slice, he deflected the trident away from the Criminal's hands, which landed behind him, leaving Sigurd defenceless.

"Sorry, dood, but you brought it upon yourself," said Teddy, gripping the machete with the grace of a master swordsman. Although the Prinny body was definitely more suitable for the dual-wielding of weapons, his training in his past life had provided him with mastery of a single sword. His weapon at the moment wasn't exactly the lovingly crafted katana he was used to, but it was good enough. "I'll say a prayer for you, so rest in peace now, dood."

"You... you sinner!" roared the Criminal, his eyes blazing. All the composure he had shown during their first encounter was gone, and he was now reduced to the same level of intelligence as his deceased partner. Unlike the other, however, he didn't have the force to back it up, and in the end it only made him weaker.

He came at the penguin demon with fists, but they were easily dodged. Without a weapon, this would be nothing more than a slaughter. Teddy closed his eyes for a brief second, murmuring a brief rosary, before opening them once again and gripping his machete once more and charged.

What he had not expected was for Sigurd to kick away the sword he held in his flippers. Sigurd grinned, suddenly composed once more, and Teddy realized that his entire thing had been an act. Light glimmered around the Crimina's hands, revealing what appeared to be a pair of Legendary gloves.

Before Teddy had a chance to react, Sigurd was upon him.

"KING OF BEAS—"

A machete punctured his chest before he had a chance to finish his attack, and Sigurd stumbled forwards several steps, looking down at the protruding weapon with shock, before his eyes rolled up and he collapsed, a pool of red liquid gathering around his prone form before he dissipated into Mana. The machete fell to the floor, covered in blood.

Teddy looked up, only to see Obito's figure arriving, slightly short of breath.

"Captain...!"

"You were careless," said the eye-patched Prinny, leaning slightly on his other machete. Teddy first noticed his beak, which was charred at the edges, particularly the front. "People like them don't lose composure that easily; he was fooling you the entire time."

"What do you mean, dood?"

Obito coughed.

"Take a look at him, he's a Ninja. He grew his hair long and changed his clothing, but he's definitely a Ninja. All along he was baiting you into taking away his lance and moving into close range so he could take you on at his best distance," said the Prinny. "If you have known he was a Ninja and fist-user from the beginning, there was no way you would have engaged him at close-range. He played you."

Teddy looked at Obito, slightly slack-jawed.

"It can't be helped," said the Prinny captain. "In your past life you were a swordsman, taught to fight fair fights. I'm different... I was trained ever since I learned to fight that enemies never fight fairly. But do try to observe your opponents more before engaging in battle next time. I may not be there to save you."

Teddy nodded, feeling admonished. He hadn't expected anything like that at all, and if the captain hadn't shown up he definitely would've been out for the count. He reflected on the incident momentarily, before looking up at his captain once more.

"Sorry, dood."

"Don't worry. What matters is that we're alright and that they were taken care of. Did you get all three of them?" asked Obito. If the remaining Pirates had been fully exterminated, there wouldn't be any causes for worries anymore. They'd be able to search for the Geo Symbol at will.

"Three? There were only two," said Teddy, nervously.

Obito froze, before grabbing the blood-stained machete on the ground and turning around, getting ready to sprint. Teddy looked at him, surprised, before Obito's voice shook him out of it.

"Naruto's in danger! We've got to move!"

* * *

Naruto knew he was in deep shit the moment the woman dropped in front of him, her disappointed glare showing the entire world that she thought he was nothing more than a bug to squash. Her white hair and her tattered clothing that might've caused a nosebleed in less dangerous situations affiliated her with the Pirates he had seen flying on that ship. The bow she held radiated power as well, power that Naruto wasn't sure if he could match.

He was scared, horrified. In front of him was something that might've been as strong as Adell, except definitely not as friendly. The pure power she was radiating had his stomach in a knot so tight he could hardly breathe, and his body was so stiff he wondered if he had turned to rock somehow.

She had no qualms about killing him.

He knew that for sure.

The woman tossed a lock of her hair backwards, looking at him with contempt. Her left arm gripped her bow, while her right arm touched the string. Instantly, an arrow that seemed to be made completely out of Mana materialized out of nothing.

"Just my luck... My brothers get to play with the strong ones, and I'm let off to hunt the weakling," said the woman, looking at him with barely concealed contempt. The mere stare was enough to send all of Naruto's danger senses into haywire, and the coldness was enough to freeze his sweat. "My name is Signy, just so you know who killed you. Bye-bye now, boy."

Had Naruto not known the attack was coming, he would've been skewered on the spot. As it was, however, the attack still nicked his neck, letting out a slight stream of blood as the arrow flew behind him and lodged itself in the ground, where it exploded with the force of a small explosive tag.

The blonde boy looked upwards at the Pirate, determined not to let her see his fear. His legs were shaking, but he had no time to worry about them now. The moment his attention drifted he was liable to become a walking human pincushion, something that was definitely not in his future career plans.

Her finger twitched, and he dove into a roll, avoiding the arrow by the skin of his teeth. The strike knocked several bits of his hair off, and he was on the ground now, getting up tentatively, but he was alive.

"Annoying cockroach," said Signy in distaste as she moved her hand away from the bow. Four arrows materialized out of nothing, and Naruto could feel his heart race. "For a bug, you're hard to squash. I'll do it right this time."

The moment her hand moved, Naruto dodged once again, shaky legs be damned. He avoided two of them, but the remaining two lodged deep into his legs, although thankfully they didn't explode.

The blonde shinobi hit the floor with a thud, crying out in pain as he gripped the ground and bit his leg. He had suffered wounds before, especially in the Academy when they did live weapon exercises, but nothing like this. The arrows made of Mana seemed to pour out poisonous energy, and each time they pulsed he could feel another sharp lance of pain through his entire body. He reached his arm back, gripping the arrow, but found he did not have the strength to pull it out.

CRAK.

Naruto cried out in pain as he felt the kick to his stomach, and opened his eyes to see the bare legs of the woman who had attacked him.

"Weak, weak!" said Signy, rubbing her hand on her forehead as she stepped on his back, pushing down with her strength. Naruto cried out once more, this time his scream lasted longer. It felt like somebody had suddenly dropped a couple tons on his back, and had he not reinforced it at that moment with Chakra (he didn't have a good enough grasp of Mana just yet), he was sure his spine would've broken. "Weak, weak, weak, weak, weak! Even weaker than a goddamn sinner! Shameful!"

She stomped down hard several more times, before shaking her head as Naruto's screams faded. Giving him a few more solid kicks, she realized that he was more or less out of commission, even if he hadn't faded into unconsciousness just yet.

"Boring. Off with you now."

Giving him a hard kick to the side, she looked towards the sky. Naruto, thrown into the air by the force of the kick, could do nothing more than watch as she pulled out another arrow out of nowhere. This one looked similar to the first one she had fired; the explosive one. His dimly lit mind could only think of his oncoming demise.

Except it never came.

A storm of Prinny Barrages flew in from both sides, catching the white-haired woman cleanly in the middle, creating a cloud of smoke. Naruto felt flippers grasp him gently from the air, and opened his eyes a fraction to see Teddy's face above his.

"It's alright now, dood," said the Prinny, setting him down on the soft grass beside him. "We'll take care of this, so you just lie back and rest for a bit."

"Less talking, Teddy, and more fighting," said Obito, gripping his machetes. Although he wasn't in tip-top shape, he was good enough to duke it out with a Pirate or two. The smoke cloud cleared, and the female Pirate within looked at them, slight wounds adorning her body. The Prinnies weren't surprised; Prinny Barrage was a useful move, but it lacked punch.

Signy glared at the interlopers, before gripping her bow once more. Three arrows popped into existence out of nothing; the explosive kind. She held them to the string of her bow.

"You're here now, sinners. My brothers are dead, then?"

Obito did not reply, which was the only answer that Signy needed.

"I see," said the white-haired Criminal. "That's... unfortunate. I'll have your corpses in return then."

"You think you can take down two of the Prinny Squad by yourself, dood?" asked Teddy, displaying his single machete with a stony face. "Dood, you're nuts."

"Maybe you think so," said Signy calmly. "But you'd be wrong."

The three explosive arrows flashed from existence, and instantly three smoke clouds went up into the air. Naruto grasped the ground tightly, feeling the wind ruffle his t-shirt and his shorts. His hair was flying everywhere, and he had to pull down his Providence goggles to keep dust from getting into his eye. Looking dimly forwards, he saw the Prinnies had taken flight, and were now coming down upon the bow-user at lightning speeds.

Instantly, another two arrows appeared in Signy's hands, ones that Naruto recognized. They were the same as the ones lodged in his legs right now; the ones that pulsed constantly with pain. They glowed gently, before once more being shot out of the bow.

Obito narrowly avoided his, but Teddy wasn't so lucky. The arrow lodged itself into his stomach, deriving a strangled cry out of him. He hit the ground with a thud, grasping at his chest in pain, as Obito landed on top the Criminal, and was going at her like a starved dog on a piece of meat, letting his machetes do the talking.

"Prinny Barrage!"

Signy's eyes widened, as she saw the machetes glow with blue energy. Without stopping her step, she took the arrow she had been defending herself with and drove it forwards into Obito's chest. The penguin demon's eye bulged, but held on despite the pain. Just as he was about to start the fight again, however, the arrow in his stomach exploded and sent him tumbling backwards like a rag doll.

Obito came to a rest a ways away, his entire body charred this time, as Teddy gasped in pain nearby, the stomach still lodged in his chest. Naruto, who sat up, the pain in his leg fading and the arrows pulled out, looked on in sudden despair. The Prinnies, his bodyguards, were out, and the only one remaining was the woman who was trying to kill them all.

"You were strong, but you were made weak," said Signy to the fallen Obito. An arrow appeared in her hand; the explosive kind. "Was it my brothers? Well, no matter. The weak perish in this world, that's the way it works. Off with you."

She took the arrow back against the string, and released.

For Naruto, time suddenly seemed to go in slow motion. Obito was damaged enough; another arrow would, without a doubt, finish him off. The arrow – he could see it clearly now – flew through the air like an instrument heralding destruction, and Naruto, although he knew it was impossible, struggled to stand up, to run, to block the attack that was meant for one of his protectors; one of his friends.

He didn't notice the yellow energy swirling about his feet, but Teddy, still under due to the effects of the poisonous arrow, sure did. The Prinny didn't even have the time to widen his eyes before Naruto was off like a light.

In a flash, the blonde boy had charged forwards at speeds he thought was impossible for him. Before the arrow hit the prone form of the Prinny on the ground, he gripped it in mid-air and hocked it away. It burst in mid-air, letting off a harmless explosion that did nothing but create winds strong enough to ruffle Naruto's clothing.

"...Wha—"

"TAKE THIS, 'TTEBAYO!"

Before Signy had a chance to react, Naruto was on her. A kick, bolstered by energy that glowed like the sun, struck her to the core of her very being, sending her backwards as if she had been hit by a cannonball. She broke through several trees before coming to a stop on a large stone wall, and coughed up blood as she came down.

Naruto stood where he was, exhausted. Sweat dripped down his body once more, and the golden energy that had enveloped him disappeared. He was spent, and it showed. The blood on his leg dripped down steadily, and suddenly he couldn't support his weight anymore, going down on one knee. Blood pooled around his legs from the wounds that had been caused by the arrows, and it was all he could do to keep from going unconscious.

This was it, he was spent.

Signy got up from where she had fallen, anger showing up clearly on her face. She held a hand up to her mouth, and took it away. Her eyes turned red at the sight of the blood that had been spilt, and her mouth twisted into the nastiest expression Naruto had ever seen.

"You... you dare spill my blood...?"

Suddenly, arrows, at least ten of them appeared on her hand. Naruto was too tired to be afraid, but he could feel the chill settle down once more in his body. She strung the arrows to her bow, her eye twitching madly.

"How dare you... How DARE YOU!"

With a roar like something out of a horror movie, the arrows were released, charging towards Naruto. He could see them now, somehow. Maybe the golden energy had affected him. However, he retained none of his energy, and so could do nothing more than watch as the arrows came closer and closer.

Feeling as if his doom had been sealed, he watched as the arrows came closer.

It was not to be.

A shadow jumped in front of him, its flippers already in motion. Peg-legs stood strong on the ground, and it didn't matter that the figure was charred black. It was still moving.

Obito went through the flipper seals, his body radiating agony. More than ever before, his body ached, but he kept on going. The Mana in his body wasn't going the right way, but it didn't matter. After what seemed like forever, he finally felt his throat blaze with burning Mana, and he opened his beak once more, prepared to fire his last.

"OBITO STYLE: PRINNY GRAND FIREBALL!"

It was less of a fireball, and more of a miniature sun.

The flames flew through the air, this time completely out of control. They swallowed everything they came across, trees, rocks, everything. The arrows coming in were neutralized by the flames, their explosions barely being registered, as the fireball continued on. Finally, it reached where Signy had been standing, and exploded in a fierce shower of magma, leaving a crater at least twenty meters wide and fifteen meters deep.

Naruto slumped, relief flooding his veins, as Obito collapsed, the rest of his energy spent. Horrid burn marks were evident on his beak; he had given up on controlling the fireball this time, and had poured his all into power. If that woman had survived, which was impossible, there'd be nothing he could—

"How... DARE YOU..."

Obito looked upwards, cursing God's name as he stared into the mad eyes of the woman he had attempted to destroy. If the arrow pointing at his head was any indication, he was liable to die in the next half of a second.

"TEDDY STYLE: PRINNY SHOWDOWN!"

For the last time, Signy went down in a shower of blood as Teddy flashed by her, machete swinging at the speed of sound. Her head came off, neck spewing horrid amounts of coppery liquid, and dissipated into Mana before she even hit the ground, showing just how spent she had been.

Obito smiled as he saw Teddy sheathe his machete by putting it back into his pouch, and let himself follow Naruto into the sweet, sweet realm of sleep.

* * *

"Are you alright?"

"Barely," said Naruto, as he bandaged his legs. Although the Netherworld medicine worked wonders usually, it was a whole lot less effective against a wound that went so deep. The arrows had penetrated his leg all the way to the other side, and pulling them out had been murder. "There we go. Done. I'm alright now, 'ttebayo."

"Good," said Obito, closing his good eye. His body had mostly healed, due to the heavy usage of several pieces of high class medicine, but he was still out of Mana, which prevented him from being too useful in battle. The Prinny Grand Fireball took a lot out of a person, unlike the Prinny Showdown. "Here you go, have some Ramen. I'm not sure if it's your kind of thing, but it works well on wound—"

"Ramen!?"

The bowl was snatched away from Obito's flippers instantly, and devoured in the blink of an eye. Obito had to wipe his eye several times to make sure he wasn't seeing things as a result of a head injury or something like that.

"Seeing your gusto, it appears you're better, then?" asked Obito.

"Yeah, I'm fine!" grinned Naruto as he finished off the last of the broth. Setting the bowl down with a smile, he wiped his mouth with his arms. The clothing that Adell had bought for him was now in tatters, his shirt more or less rags now due to the constant explosions, although he still kept most of his shorts. "Ahhh... That tastes great. Wait, if there's normal Ramen here, is there Unique and Legendary Ramen too?"

"Yes, why do you ask? Sometimes monsters in the Item World have that kind of--"

Obito sweat-dropped as Naruto began actively drooling. He probably would've gone on like that as well, had a distant figure not signalled the return of Teddy from salvaging what was left of the Pirates' booty.

Obito stood up to welcome his subordinate, as Naruto turned around.

"Captain! I looted their ship and their bodies, dood," said the Prinny, who was carrying a large burlap sack full of items. "I found some nice stuff in there, some Uniques. No Legendaries, though. They even had a pair of Unique gloves that should fit Naruto, dood!"

"Good work, Teddy," said Obito, as Teddy offered him the gloves. The Prinny captain inspected the item keenly, before nodding, satisfied. "These are good. A pair of Unique Hoodlum Gloves, with enough Gladiators in there to almost double the boost. Take this with you, Naruto."

He threw the pair towards the blonde shinobi, who caught it deftly.

"Hey! They're orange! Great!"

"I knew he'd like them, dood," nodded Teddy sagely. "Other than that, though, nothing we could use. I didn't find the Geo Symbol that's forbidding teleportation, either, so I dunno what we're going to do about that, dood."

"Hmm, that presents a bit of a hardship," said Obito. "Let's search once more—"

"Why?"

The pair of penguin demons turned to look at their young charge, who was looking at them with a confused shine in his eyes. The pair of Providence goggles sat on his forehead, keeping his hair from getting in his eyes, and the pair of orange Hoodlum Gloves had exchanged places with the standard black ones on his hand.

"What do you mean, why?" asked Obito. "After that Pirate attack, it's best to go back so we can get healed. Look at both me and Teddy, we can't protect you anymore."

Naruto's eyes took on a determined gleam.

"But we got here already! It's such a waste!"

Obito was surprised. No, surprised was a bit too small of a word. He was completely shocked.

"No way, you can't be telling me..."

"Hehe, captain, dood, it looks like he's serious."

"No way, nobody could still want to, not after all that."

"What are you talking about?! I can still go on!" cried Naruto, as he turned his hands into fists and standing up on his feet. The blood seeped through the bandages slightly, but he was determined not to let the pain get to him. "I want to go on, I want to get to the tenth stage and take down that Guardian you guys keep talking about!"

Obito shook his head in disbelief, as Teddy laughed humorously. The charred Prinny walked forwards, and thwapped Naruto on the head, getting an exclamation of 'ouch' out of the only humanoid being there.

"Listen to yourself!" cried the Prinny. "We're in no condition to protect you, if something happens, you know. Your leg is bleeding, and your energy is more or less spent! What are you going to do if something happens again!"

"I'll beat it, I'll take it down!" cried Naruto, his cerulean eyes shining with something that could only be described as courage; or stupidity, as Obito saw it. "You're the one who said the Item World is an unforgiving place, and I know that. I was ready for something like this all along, and I'm not going to give up until I can prove to Adell that his faith in me is right!"

"You might die!"

"I was ready for death," growled Naruto. "The moment I stepped in here!"

Obito glared into his eyes, and Naruto glared back. The Prinny captain, unwilling to turn away, found himself seeing into Naruto's eyes, and, with no small amount of surprise, found something in there that reminded him of himself a long time ago. That blind faith in those who paid attention to him, that manic behaviour that was half courage and half recklessness, and that kind heart which lay beating behind the surface. He found himself drawn in by the boy's endless enthusiasm and optimism, and saw, not for the first time, his boundless strength, determination, and potential.

These eyes were good.

Worthy of belong to both a good ninja, and a good vassal.

The same eyes he once had.

With a sigh, Obito turned away.

"Fine, have it your way. Just don't be angry if you end up in a Prinny suit like us here," said the Prinny captain, as he looked towards the rest of the islands. Behind him, he heard both Teddy and Naruto giving whoops of triumph. "Don't be happy just yet! This is the eight stage, and there are still enemies left. You still have to get past this stage, and the ninth stage, before you get to the Item Guardian and his minions. Just remember, if you want to give up, we can take you out."

"Yes, captain!" grinned Naruto, and both shinobi and penguin gave a unified salute. Obito sighed as he watched their actions, before sitting down. Naruto waved slightly, before running to the edge of the island. "I'm off, then!"

With that said, the orange-clad ninja leapt from the island in one large burst of speed. The Prinnies watched him go, as he immediately engaged in battle with a group of Mothmen.

"That boy's going to get himself killed," said Obito, sullenly.

"Don't be like that, dood," said Teddy with a grin. "It's great seeing a vassal with so much drive and energy! It's really refreshing, especially right after a life-or-death fight like that, dood."

"Hmm... He should be able to do it. Reach the Guardian at least," said Obito, looking upwards slightly. In the distance, Naruto was duking it out with a group of Zombies now, having already finished the Mothmen off. "...He'll overextend himself at this rate."

"Captain, dood. Why can't you just come out and admit you're worried about him?"

"Shut it, soldier!"

"Aye-aye, dood!"

Glancing at Naruto once more, Obito wondered about the golden energy that the boy had given off at that time. Once they got out of the Item World and rested up a bit, he'd research it a bit more. For now though... Let the kid have his fun.

* * *

Adell looked at the group that arrived out of the Item World gate with surprise in his eyes. He had expected Naruto to get a little beaten up, that was alright with him, but the extent of the damage to the whole group had gone far beyond his expectations.

Teddy was probably the one with the least amount of wounds, sporting a variety of minor bruises along with a puncture mark in his chest. He was holding up an unconscious Naruto, who was bandaged at the leg and had several nasty bruises on his chest (were those foot marks?) poking through what remained of his shirt. Obito was singed, and his beak was more or less all black, which made him look radically different.

"What happened?" asked Adell, accepting the unconscious Naruto from a weary Teddy. "What floor did you guys get to, and how the hell did you manage to beat yourself up like this?"

"Tenth, the kid beat the Item Guardian," said Obito, his voice slightly obstructed by his cough. However, the penguin smile on his face was evident even through the blackened beak. "I'll tell you the whole story, Lord Adell, but you're not going to believe it."


	4. Omake 1: The Tag Team of Terror

Disgaea: When Worlds Collide

By Random Writer 46

* * *

Omake 1

The Tag-Team of Terror

* * *

"Urrggghh…"

Sasuke blinked as his eyes opened slowly. The world in front of him was a blur, and his body felt as if it was made of lead. The metal on his back felt strange against his skin, and for a fleeting second he imagined he was back in Konoha in bed before he swam comfortably out of semi-consciousness.

"Erggh…?"

Shaking his head slightly, he looked upwards at the ceiling. There was a bright light there – what kind of smartass put bright lights in his room? Was it Naruto's doing again? What the hell kind of prank was – he jolted awake as he realized he couldn't move his arms and legs.

Twisting his head frantically, he looked around. He was lying on top of what looked like an operating table, although one that was a lot more technologically advanced than the ones they had at the Konoha General Hospital, anyway. His chest was bare, his pale skin glowing faintly under the bright light. His shorts were still there, but he was barefoot. His arms and legs were held by restraints that seemed to be welded to the table. He looked to his left, and instantly regretted it. There, on a small metal table at the side, was a tray of terrifying instruments that seemed almost medical in nature, had they not exuded an aura of terror and madness.

"Where the hell am—"

"You are finally awake?" asked a deep, masculine voice.

Sasuke quickly swung his head to the side, looking in the direction of the voice. There, on a table to his right, also locked onto an operating table, was a man who seemed to be about thirty years of age. He too had his chest bare for the world to see, yet unlike Sasuke he seemed resigned to his fate. His long hair, which Sasuke imagined had once been immaculately cared for, was now rather stringy and coarse. A thick stubble covered his chin, and his eyes were slightly bloodshot.

"Who are you? Where am I?" asked Sasuke as he struggled futilely against the bonds. He tried channeling chakra to his limbs, and although he could feel a slight boost the metal was still stronger. With his hands bound, he was also unable to form hand-seals. What the hell was he supposed to do?

The long-haired man sighed.

"My name is Aurum," said the man. "And you're in Nether School, the Evil Academy."

"Evil Academy?" asked Sasuke, incredulous. "What the hell kind of place is that?"

Aurum looked at him like he was retarded.

"Well, see. An Evil Academy is a place where demons go to learn to be evil, understand?" said the middle-aged man slowly, as if he was talking to a toddler. Sasuke suddenly felt an urge to strangle the man, although he hadn't been in his presence for more than a couple of minutes at the most. "I find that it's common sense, really."

Sasuke had stopped listening to him somewhere around demons and learn. What a joke, demons going to school? Everybody knew that demons were brainless beasts, filled with violent emotions and power. Heck, the Kyuubi had been a prime example of a demon, according to the legends and the history classes that he had taken in the Academy – the Shinobi Academy, a real school, unlike the place this obviously-disturbed man was talking about – and all the books had been clear on one point, that demons did not possess rationality.

No rationality meant no intelligence. No intelligence meant that learning was a wasted effort. Therefore, there was no way in hell that demons would try and learn anything, much less go to school.

"Well, I'm not surprised that you don't get it," said Aurum, closing his eyes. "Apparently Mao kidnapped you from some backwards world where they don't even have any real demons at the request of somebody. Imagine that. If I had my way with him he'd never be doing favours for anybody."

"Wait, who kidnapped me?"

"Mao, the son of the Overlord," said Aurum. "Well, the Overlord now, anyway."

"Wait, so he kidnapped me? You know about this—"

"I don't know anything," said Aurum. "Look, I'm in the same position you are right now. Do you think that I'm strapped to this table because I want to be? No. Anyway, you're pretty lucky. You weren't awake when he was experimenting on you. Well, actually, that might not be a good thing. The moment you get a chance, you'd better take a look at yourself and make sure that nothing's misaligned. Last time he managed to swap my arms and legs around. Took a while for him to finish collecting data and move them back."

Human… experimentation? Sasuke felt fear settling in for the first time. The realization that he was in an unfamiliar place, completely at the mercy of an unknown being finally hit him, and he could feel a strange, unsettling feeling dropping into his stomach.

Voices suddenly rang throughout the empty room, coming from the hallway through the door. There were two, one older and more masculine, and the other younger and brattier.

"…but you see, Mao-kun, organs can't be transplanted that way in normal humans. I understand demon physiology is a lot more resilient, and I love that about demons by the way… They can recover from any sorts of injuries, and even if organs are shifted around they still somehow manage to survive by reconnecting nerves and tissues so that their bodies function properly… I read your papers on human vivisection, and I simply love it! It's given me so many new ideas, but there are certain parts…"

"…chimaru. That's really given me some food for thought. I'll have to take that into account then… Oh, have you seen my newest specimen? A chimera created from parts of a Marionette, a Holy Dragon, thirteen Zombies, and parts of a Super Hero! I'm sure you'll simply love it… Oh, yes, I've got a surprise for you… Sure you'll love it, think of it as an early birthday present…"

"…remembered my birthday? How kind…"

"…of course, anything for my good… Have you seen my new tools, by the way? I ordered a set from a Rosenqueen branch a couple Netherworlds away. The shipping fee was rather hefty, but the quality was worth it, I'd say. The scalpel can cut through a Cyclops like knife through butter. I'll have to show them to you later."

"Oh, I can't wait. Ah, looks like we're here."

The voices were right outside the door now, Sasuke could tell. He audibly swallowed without even realizing it, and he slowly began to realize that the emotion he felt was absolute terror.

The door opened.

"Oh—Oh! OH! This is exactly what I wanted! How did you know?!"

Two figures stepped in through the doorway, one crowing with delight. His face was ghastly white, and his eyes were covered with what seemed like purple mascara. He was wearing a headband, one with a musical note on it, and otherwise dressed rather normally for somebody from his world. The other was a white-haired short little boy with glasses.

"I hope you like it, Orochimaru."

"Oh, I love it!" gushed Orochimaru as he stepped towards Sasuke. The Uchiha heir felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up as the creepy man approached. His mother had always told him not to trust strangers and weird people, and this guy was both turned up to eleven. "Oh, you managed to get him to be all wrapped up too! I can't wait to start experimenting on him! Do you mind if I use your lab here and get started? My hands are itching to experiment!"

"Of course I don't mind, eh-heh," said the white-haired boy. His face contorted slightly, and his glasses started fogging up. Sasuke instantly recoiled away from him the same way he had done the other man. There was nothing safe about these two, nothing at all. The fear that had settled in his stomach earlier now spread throughout his body, as if trying to take it over. "As long as I get to watch, of course. I have to admit, though, I couldn't resist myself. I already started experimenting a little bit on him already. There was this boy from Netherworld Disgaea here a while ago, see. He brought with him an assortment of body parts that I found fascinating. I even managed to buy a few off him."

"Oh? What is it?"

"Well, why don't you take a look?"

* * *

A minute later, Sasuke's face was locked into a silent scream as he looked down at his body. Aurum had already turned his head away, giving the boy at least some of the privacy that everybody deserved. He had been subjected to this as well, but after being locked up by Mao here for about a year now, he was starting to get used to this kind of treatment.

Still, the Horse Wiener thing being your first… That was enough to traumatize anybody.


	5. Chapter 4: Tragedy of the Marionette I

Disgaea: When Worlds Collide

By Random Writer 46

* * *

Chapter 4

Tragedy of the Marionette – Part I

* * *

Several days had passed since Naruto's first foray into the Item World, and he was starting to get the hang of demon life. The Prinnies would go around here and there, occasionally running errands and the like, but apparently unlike their old master Etna, Adell was a man of little needs. He spent most of his time not managing Adell House going into the Item World of rather high-level weapons, occasionally Unique and Legendary, for training. Naruto had went along for the ride once, and was treated to the sight of his red-headed mentor obliterating floors twenty-one to thirty of a rather shiny axe all by himself. Once again he had been reminded of the giant rift that existed between him and the one he wanted to help, and it was galling to think that he was barely any help to somebody who had done so much for him already.

Because of that, he had asked Taro to be his training partner for a while. He wasn't allowed to go into the Item World by himself, due to Adell's concern for his safety, and Obito and Teddy were off running errands. The leader of Adell's division of the Prinny Squad was off talking to that girlfriend Adell had back home, and Teddy was off to another Netherworld to get ingredients for tonight's dinner. He had volunteered himself, wanting to see some of the other worlds out there, but he had been told that it was too dangerous a mission for him. He failed to see how, until he realized that several of the ingredients came from things such as dragons and ghosts. He had respectfully bowed out right then.

"You've got to turn it up a notch!"

Which was why he was sparring with Taro right now. Naruto wiped the sweat off his forehead, panting as he looked at his opponent. Taro wasn't even sweating, his clothing was unruffled and his eyes, although alert, remained completely serene. The difference between them was huge; Naruto kept attacking and attacking, but no matter what he couldn't even scratch Taro once. The boy on the other hand was actually having problems holding back, and had returned to using the ladle that he had been wielding rather than Longinus, which had taken a liking to him. (It had been a bit of surprise to learn that the spear was sentient, and it had been an even bigger surprise to realize that the spear was an expert in weaponry and liked chewing him out whenever he screwed up.)

"Here I come, 'ttebayo!" cried Naruto as he charged forwards, attacking with a palm strike. Even if it hit, it would do no damage, Naruto knew, but he wanted it to hit. So far he had been completely unable to land a hit on the cow-boy, and so he made it his goal that by the time the session was over, he was at least going to nick him, dammit.

Taro was unworried, raising a hand gently up to grasp Naruto's fist. What must have seemed to him to be nothing more than a simple motion was faster than a speeding bullet for Naruto. The speed had been incredibly surprising for Naruto, but he had gotten used to it after being blindsided at least fifteen times already.

"Sorry, Naruto, but you're going to have to do better than—"

"Believe me, I am!" cried Naruto as he hooked his leg around Taro's, using the momentary punch as a diversion. Taro's eyes widened slightly, and Naruto grinned as he realized he had gotten the boy's expression to change. His right arm was caught in Taro's grip, but his left arm was still free. Twisting his fingers into a fist, he swung his limb back and drove it forwards, intending to deliver a jaw-breaking punch. "Grit your teeth!"

Yet, Taro was still slightly faster.

Raising his left arm, he blocked the punch with the side of his arm, before twisting it slightly, deflecting the blow away. Taking the chance – although he didn't need it – he brought his head forwards and delivered a powerful head-butt. Naruto gave out a loud cry and flipped backwards, rolling a couple times on the grass before coming to a stop.

"Oh, oh my god, Naruto!" cried Taro as he ran forwards. "I didn't mean to put so much power into it, it's just that you've been getting closer and closer! Please don't die, Naruto!"

"Oh, come on! Who the hell do you think I am!" cried Naruto as he pulled himself off the ground. Shit, that hit had been much harder than he had expected. A couple days ago he might've fallen to something like that, but he was getting better at tolerating these heavy blows now. His head felt slightly addled, and some things were getting a little blurry. "I'm Uzumaki Naruto – I'm not going to die in a sparring session! Urgh!"

"Oh… ew," noted Taro as he blanched.

Naruto, who had received the blow straight to his head, was in the middle of throwing up everything he had for breakfast. The ramen that had tasted so delicious was absolutely disgusting as it went the other way, landing in a partially-dissolved pile in front of him. The smell was disgusting, and Taro almost felt like throwing up just at the sight of it.

"Don't you eat anything other than ramen, Naruto? That's unhealthy. And the noodles are glowing too… Are these Unique? Don't tell me the mess in the pantry was because you were looking for Unique ramen."

"Yes," said Naruto as he wiped his mouth. He was going to have to go to the washroom later and rinse his mouth. "It's called cake."

"So you're telling me that the only things you eat are ramen and cake?"

"Well, there are other things," said Naruto as he scratched his head. His eyes were slightly unfocused, probably due to the damage. It seemed that he wasn't really in his right mind at the moment. "It's just that I really can't think of any right now. Say, why are there three of you, Taro? Do demons have their own version of the Bunshin no Jutsu as well? Can you teach me?"

Taro shook his head, sighing.

"Adell's going to be so mad at me… Um, let's take you to the Dark Hospital."

The gray-haired pre-teen wrapped Naruto's arm around his neck and started heading into the castle. Even in his dazed state, Naruto was still slightly surprised at how strong the younger boy was. He was carrying almost the entirety of his body weight without any problems, as if he wasn't even there, or as if he was no heavier than a fly.

The thought was rather disheartening in a strange sort of way, Naruto found, although that might've been the concussion talking.

* * *

Kankurou was not a nice guy.

He also did not trust.

These two things were connected, because they made him a bad person to try and get close to, and the reasons for both were the same. Being a shinobi of Suna as well as the son of the Kazekage, he had been taught from birth that anybody, even those on his team, were potential enemies. He had been taught from birth that blood and nationality meant nothing, and that money made the world go 'round, and that true love did not exist. Any fairy tale Aesop he ever heard was forced out of his head by his shinobi training, he was told they were all lies.

It didn't help that his father was the Kazekage, and thus had often very little time for him and his siblings. It didn't help that his mother was dead, and the cause of it was the birth of his little brother. It didn't help that his uncle had been murdered by his little brother, and that his father had been the one to send him to his death. It didn't help that his elder sister was very detached from the family in general, and thus from him as well. It didn't help that his younger brother was a sleep-deprived demon-vessel who had the power to kill him any time, and probably wouldn't be bothered by it for more than a second, if at all.

Thus, Kankurou was a very cynical young man of fifteen. Life had made it that way for him. He was groomed in every way to become a perfect ninja of the Sand, and the Sand's standards were very different from peace-loving Konoha. Yet, there were problems with his upbringing that his father and the Sand's council had not foreseen.

He had no talent.

He had nothing.

His sister, a prodigy in the ways of Fuuton jutsu, had managed to pick up a Suna battlefan when she was five and managed to swing it three times before losing her strength. By the time she was seven, she had learnt the majority of the weaker, non-combat Fuuton jutsu, and had moved onto her first major Fuuton jutsu, the Kamaitachi. By seven-and-a-half, she had mastered that, and by the age of ten she was working on an apprenticeship with the local summoner, trying to find an animal that would fit her.

His sister, who was also gifted intellectually as well, being considered a genius on many levels. Her intelligence was at least Chuunin-level when she was ten, and it only took her a couple months after learning the rules of go for her to start placing consistently in the elderly igo tournaments that took place in Suna. It was no mean feat, considering many of the players were themselves retired shinobi, and often at least Chuunin level. Her marks in the Academy had been unmatched, and she had graduated valedictorian.

His sister, whose beauty often stunned foreign dignitaries into silence when they found out that the young lady at the side of the Kazekage was not the Daimyo's daughter, the princess of the land, and rather a young shinobi-in-training. There was no quelling the talk of the town, that whoever married her would be a lucky man, becoming at once a part of the Kazekage's family and the husband of the would-be beauty queen of Suna. The only thing that kept suitors away was Gaara, whose psychotic tendencies frightened the hell out of everybody.

His brother, who, born with a demon sealed within his belly, had power unmatched by everybody in the village other than the Kage. Although he lacked control, and he was psychotic due to his lack of sleep, there was no doubt in his mind that Gaara would become a much better shinobi than him. With his absolute defense, and the demon that would come to assist him any time he was in truly mortal danger, Gaara did not ever fear for his life.

His brother, who was the focus of the village's attention. If he sneezed, the village got a cold. All the expectations that had been piled up on him previous to his birth, Kankurou had never felt before in a lifetime. All the fear directed at him, although negative, gave Kankurou a sort of strange, guilty envy. Everywhere he walked, people parted. Anything he wanted, it was invariably given to him. There was nothing that he needed that he could not have, with the possible exception of peace and acceptance.

He was nothing.

All he had were his puppets.

And Karasu.

He wasn't strong like Gaara, was not intelligent like Temari. He did not have the leadership qualities that his father did, and displayed none of the talent that was becoming of his family. He was pretty much a cookie-cutter shinobi, and he realized that.

It drove him crazy.

He was not an asset to his village.

Which is probably why he did what he did.

It was supposed to be an average C-rank mission, the kind that he risked his life over and Temari breezed through, and the kind that Gaara utterly demolished without a bare scratch on his sand shield. They were sent out shortly after the recent Genin exam, investigating a strange creatures being spotted in the vicinity of a nearby town.

Although they never spotted them, they had managed to track them down without any complications. Strange footsteps in the sand, still warm when they found them, lead to the ruins of a nearby village that had been completely destroyed by a powerful sandstorm a year or two ago. The place had been completely abandoned, and the people had been evacuated by the Suna shinobi and relocated to other villages. There was a reconstruction effort going on, but it was still in the middle of its fundraising phase. Therefore, nobody should've been around the area.

They had camped on the outskirts of the ruins for the night. For three days they had been travelling without sleep; due to Gaara's insomnia and ruthlessness. Kankurou feared for his life every time he disagreed with his red-headed younger brother, and the subject of sleep was one of them. There were times when the demon-sealed boy was very bitter about the fact that they could sleep and he couldn't, and so it was with great hesitancy that Kankurou finally broke down, using the excuse of setting up camp and watching the ruins first before moving in.

Gaara had given him a glare, but acquiesced. He had disappeared shortly to who-knows-where, but Kankurou had no doubt that he would be back by the time they moved out tomorrow morning. He never knew what Gaara did when they slept and he didn't, and he suspected that the boy didn't want him to find out.

It was in the middle of looking up at the moon that he realized Temari had settled down beside him without him realizing it. Bound by reflex, his right arm flew to where Karasu was bound up, before stopping.

"You don't have to get that tense around your own sister, you know."

"Yeah, yeah, Temari," said Kankurou, calmly. If there was one specialty of his, it was the fact that he almost never sweat. He had no idea why, but it was useful every now and then. Although he couldn't regulate his body temperature very well, he had gotten used to searing heat, and could even wear full-body black clothing that would fry any other shinobi who attempted such a feat. There was also the added bonus of not having sweat ruin his carefully-applied war-paint. "...Gaara's still gone?"

"You know how he is," said Temari, shifting her legs slightly. Kankurou was unaffected by the action, but he knew several young men in the village who would kill to be in his position right now. Not that it was that big of a deal. They were shinobi after all.

That was it. The conversation between them.

It was kind of funny, actually.

This was it, the extent of their bond as siblings; pitiful, almost laughable. Although they lived in the same house, and were born of the same parents, they had almost nothing in common. They barely spoke on missions, and spent most of their free time far apart from each other. Any effective teamwork during missions was due to practice and followed a basic pattern of yielding to Gaara.

For a second, he felt a slight chill. With a slight motion, he tugged the bandages that covered up Karasu behind him closer. He was trained to trust no one, not even his elder sister, and it made him slightly uncomfortable in her presence. It was alright however. He'd get through it.

"…Kankurou. Are you cold?"

Temari's voice broke him out of his brooding for a second, as he realized he was in her company. The bandages that he had been tugging around him were released, and as he let go of the rough material, he realized just how hard he had been holding onto it.

"No, I'm fine," said Kankurou. "Worry about yourself for a bit. With the amount that you wear, I'm surprised you don't have a cold yet. Might want to cover yourself up a bit, if only to keep some of the guys away."

Temari let out a short chuckle, slightly bitter in tone.

"Not that I have to worry about that, with Gaara around," said the blonde-haired shinobi as she looked at the moon in the sky as well, forlorn. There was a slight pause in her words, as if she was searching for something to talk about. A topic. Then, as if she had found it, she turned her eyes upon Kankurou once more. "What do you think about our family, Kankurou?"

"Our family? It's messed up."

"Of course it is," said Temari. "But… do you think of us as family at all?"

"…What kind of question is that?" asked Kankurou. "We're related by blood, aren't we? We have the same father, and the same mother. There's no question that we're family."

"That's… not what I'm talking about," said the sandy-blonde girl. "I know you don't really have any friends, but I met a girl at the Academy. She's graduated now, and we don't really talk much anymore, but there was this one time that she invited me over to her house… I met her parents. We had dinner together… It was fun."

Kankurou's eyes wandered over to her.

"Why are you telling me this?"

"…I don't know," said Temari. "I just wanted somebody to listen, I guess."

"…Go on, then."

"Heh…" said Temari as she looked downwards, crossing her arms around her knees. A cold wind passed by, and she felt the chill distinctly. The desert was hot during the day, and cold during the night. Suna was a land of extremes. It was a good thing that the clothing she wore did double-duty, otherwise she'd either have roasted or be freezing to death now. "We sat down at the table… Her brother was there, you know. He was a little younger than her, probably in the same Academy class as you. He kept asking what she did during class, what kind of jutsu and training she was going through… And her father was so proud, and her mother so happy. It… really felt different, being a part of that."

Kankurou let her words sink in without really thinking about that. Her voice, normally sharp in the household, was dulled slightly by his hood. It was good… He didn't want to let those words truly reach him. He already knew they had a messed up family, dammit, and nothing was going to change that. As long as Gaara remained a psychopath, as long as the uneven balance of power was there, there wasn't going to be any change…

"I've been thinking. Maybe it's not Gaara who's been screwing up, you know," said Temari as she looked slightly sideways. "We're the older ones… We're the ones who're supposed to be looking after him. The ones who should be disciplining him, the ones who're supposed to show him how to live. I don't… I don't think we've ever really talked. Ever since he was born."

"You think we can fix up this screwed-up relationship now?" asked Kankurou, his voice slightly higher than he wanted it to be. "What the hell are we supposed to do? Gaara would kill us the moment we get in his way. At any second! Father's trying to groom him into becoming a killing machine!"

Temari was silent.

"…I guess… you're right."

Without another word, she walked off, back to camp. Her footsteps were soft, barely making a sound as they sank into the soft sand. Pretty soon she was out of range, and Kankurou looked back up at the moon, extreme emotions swirling around in his chest. There were so many things that he wanted to say, so many things that he wanted to think, to feel. Yet they conflicted against each other, contrasting each other, contradicting each other.

He wanted peace and quiet, yet he felt hatred to Gaara for ruining his life. He felt at the same time envy for his talented and beautiful older sister and his attention-hogging younger brother, yet despised himself for even pondering that, knowing the trials and tribulations they went through for being themselves. He felt pain, he felt sorrow, yet somewhere deep within was a spark of annoying hope.

Family…

Angrily, he squashed that hope with his mind.

They would never be a normal family. They could not be.

This was why Suna shinobi were taught that emotions were weaknesses. This was because they actually were. What else was he supposed to do with these hazardous whims? What purpose did they have other than to pierce his gut with infinite shards of glass? Why the hell did they exist, if they weakened him so much?

Puppets never had to feel this way.

He wished he was one.

* * *

At six in the morning they moved out, with Gaara returning from his nocturnal solitude. No words were shared, no information given as the trio of siblings deserted their campgrounds, now once again nothing more than sand and sand, making their way towards the ruins that were in sight. A slight haze covered the village, coating it in yellow. Nothing more than a small sandstorm, and something Gaara was easily keeping calm with his powers. One might wonder why he would do such a thing, when there was no possibility of him being in danger of it, but visibility was an important thing to him, and he wanted to keep it if at all possible.

They passed by the gates, which were quite obviously ruined by this point. The wooden frame, untended to by its past keepers and hit hard by the disaster that had emptied out the settlement, was in pieces on the ground. Tents that had been pitched in the empty sand had been from new arrivals, old stone buildings had been filled with sand as a result of the disaster.

Kankurou had to keep nervous thoughts down. The destruction was great… Yet he was travelling with somebody who could probably cause this sort of destruction on a whim. Younger brother or not, he was travelling with a psychopath blessed by the gods to have powers beyond his belief.

Their footsteps made no sound in the sand, soft as it was. It was hard to believe something that sifted and moved so easily could possibly be so damaging, yet the evidence was before his very eyes. They were passing by a street as Temari motioned for them to stop.

"What is it?" whispered Kankurou as they followed her and put their backs against the wall, although he had a hard time of it, considering the bandaged puppet that he had slung over his shoulders.

"I hear voices. Shh."

Kankurou instantly fell silent, understanding.

It took several seconds for his ears to find the sound, silent as it was. The house they were pressed up against; it was in better condition than the rest of the ruined buildings, and the only one that seemed even remotely livable. As he pressed the side of his head against the building wall, he could hear inside. Raspy, wooden voices came from within. Some of them were rather monotone, others slightly more animated. Yet it felt as if each of them lacked a soul, or at least the ability to express themselves. As he closed his eyes and pushed his consciousness further into his auditory senses, he listened to the conversation within.

"…'ll be mad. We've been told to scout this place out, and we've been here for weeks. There's nothing here, nothing at all," said one of the voices. It was wooden, completely monotone. The words might've sounded like they were coming out of a human's mouth, the tone was definitely not. It was like a speech made by a machine. "He'll be coming soon… What do we do then?"

"What else can we do?" asked the other voice. "There's nothing for it but to tell him the truth. He'll do what he likes, how he likes. All we can hope for is to avoid his anger."

"How can we do that? We need an offering…"

Kankurou wrenched his head away from the wall, having heard enough. Temari did the same, and Gaara, who hadn't even thought about joining them, simply looked on as they gave each other telling glances. It seemed that the sighting of the strange monsters had been exaggerated slightly...

"Missing-nin?" asked Kankurou.

"Most likely," nodded Temari. "If they were strong, they wouldn't be hiding out in this area. There's no food, and nothing to do. With the reconstruction efforts going on, it would be merely a matter of time before people start coming back here. Looks like they've made this place their temporary retreat."

Kankurou nodded.

"We take them out?"

"And calm the clients down in one stroke. As long as we have Gaara here, it'll be alright," nodded Temari as she looked on. The red-headed subject in question didn't even look at them at the mention of his name, instead merely staring intently into the doorway. He never bothered to listen to his siblings' conversations, they were merely massive wastes of time. Given a mission, all he had to do was kill all the targets. It was that simple.

"Alright, how are we going to make our entrance, then?"

* * *

The three Marionettes stood around the table, their faces completely unable to betray the turmoil that they were feeling inside. Although they were fashioned of wood, they felt every emotion that other demons did, and the one that dominated their mentalities right now was the chill called fear. Had Marionettes been fashioned the same way as humanoid demons, then without a doubt they would've been quaking in their boots. As it was, however, even their voices were completely calm.

"What do we do…"

"How can we survive?"

"Comrades, what are you worried about?" asked a voice from the doorway.

In stepped another puppet-like demon, although where the others were green this one was orange. Its face was as blank as the others, yet there was a slight lilt in its voice that the green-hatted ones did no exhibit. Its body was wooden, and its movements as well, yet it walked with more flourish, as though something in its body was threatening to break out.

"Ruin… where have you been?" asked one of the green ones, its eyes lighting up for a slight second before dying down once more. Had the white holes not been positioned on its wooden face where normal eyes would've been on a normal face, they would've hardly been eyes at all. Pure white, and looking as though they had been painted on, they were circles that could've given children nightmares. "You've left no trace of yourself for three weeks now. We were afraid you might have deserted us."

"Siblings, comrades," said the one called Ruin with a slight shake of its head. "Do you really trust me that little? I understand that little Mana went into the process of your creation, but I thought that the crafted demon heart within you held more trust for a relative than that. I've been… scouting."

"Scouting? There is nothing around."

"Then it seems you haven't scouted as far as I have," said Ruin, the painted line on its face turning upwards slightly in a horrifying imitation of a smile. "I've come across what could only be described as a village of humans lying to the south. Although I tried to remain untraceable, it seems that some of them had managed to catch glimpses of me. Nevertheless, it seems that there are humans in this world."

"Where does that leave us?" asked another one of the greencaps. "So you have found humans within a human world, that simply explains their location. Remember that the leader has ordered us to come back with 'something interesting', and so far we have nothing."

"Are you so sure about that?" asked Ruin, chuckling. "These humans… they are not as ordinary as you are thinking right now, surely. I have sensed what seems to be a sort of Mana within their bodies, and they are able to succeed at feats that normal humans cannot. I have found something interesting… it is information."

"Will it save our hides?"

"Will it please the leader?"

"Only time will tell," said Ruin. "For now, how about you make yourselves useful and prepare for his arrival? We have to tidy this place up a bit at least, the old man won't be happy if he arrives in the middle of a desert wasteland where all the chairs are broke—"

Before the red Marionette was able to finish the sentence, the window on the wall, the only entrance into the room other than the wall, blew inwards with humongous force, smashing against the wall and breaking off the windowsill. The Marionettes turned to look at the noise.

"What was—"

The sentence that ones of the greens was about to utter was cut off as another burst of wind, this time even stronger than before, smashed against the wall from outside. The entire windowsill came off this time, blown apart from the wall, and flew towards Ruin like a shuriken, although it merely bounced off harmlessly against the wooden cross that the red Marionette retrieved from its back.

Cracks quickly appeared on the surface of the wall as wind continuously pounded against it, like a never-ending barrage of tidal waves. From the single hole in the wall, where the window had been, they could feel the pure pressure that was coming towards them. Each of the Marionettes prepared themselves.

"We're under attack…? What are—"

"SURPRISE, SUCKERS!"

Ruin spun his head quickly.

"Behind us!"

Each of the other Marionettes followed in turn, quickly spinning their heads one-eighty degrees to look behind them at the real attack… Except. There was nothing there. Nothing except a detached wooden head, which looked like it had come from a human-sized doll. Its three wooden eyes stared outwards at them blankly, as a speaker held in its mouth continuously blurted out words of alarm.

Ruin quickly turned backwards, realizing that he had been had. Gripping the wooden cross that was his controller, he raised it once more, as the wind increased in strength. The cracks on the wall were starting to spread and increase in both size and amount…

KRACK.

BAM.

Unable to handle the pressure any longer, the wall buckled under the strain, breaking into pieces. Unchained to the heavy structure, the debris flew at the Marionettes with surprising speed considering their size. Ruin did not waste him, throwing up his cross. The majority of the rocks, wood, and other material were deflected, although a few small shards managed to break through his guard and strike his wooden body. The other Marionettes, although not as efficient as he, had done well also, deflecting most of the damage.

Ruin lowered his wooden cross, looking at where the wall had been. He could see the remnants of the town outside, and the sand that covered the town streets. Most importantly, however, he could see the attackers. Two male figures, and one female one, who was holding a giant fan; she must've been the one to blow the wall down.

"What do we—"

"Kill them," ordered Ruin nonchalantly. "They attacked first."

Instantly, the battle was on. The Marionettes pulled out the wooden crosses on their backs, their joints clicking as they moved. Enemy in sight and orders received, their minds shifted into an empty state, completely set on completing their objective. Their bare, blocky feet slammed against the ground as they rushed towards the intruders like a moving wall.

Kankurou smirked as he looked at his foes. Puppets… huh. Well, these were his specialty. It seemed that the puppeteer wasn't around here; oh well, it wasn't like he could be too far off, not if he wanted to keep these guys moving. After they took the puppets out, it'd be easy to figure out where the rogue was. Deftly, he flicked his index finger backwards.

Karasu's head, which had been lying on the floor, opened its mouth. A jet of white mist spewed out of the wooden orifice, drenching the Marionettes. As soon as the liquid covered them, they stopped. The momentum that had been carrying them forward continued, and unable to stop themselves they crashed into the wall. Wood splintered as their block faces came into contact with the stone walls. They slid to the ground, lying in strange poses as if their strings had been cut.

Ruin looked at the prone forms of his comrades, and shook his head.

"What are you doing? Get up."

Kankurou raised an eyebrow at the voice. He had never heard of a talking puppet before… Not that it couldn't be done with the jutsu and technology that was currently available, but there was really no point for something like that. Was it supposed to be a diversion, was it a psychological trick? Maybe there were actually several puppeteers rather than just the one; it would make sense that they'd have to communicate with each other somehow, and if the other puppets had receivers… Nah, that was possible, but improbable. There were plenty other ways of getting information across that was easier and less revealing to the enemy, hand signals for instance.

"Not going to happen, punk," said Kankurou, pointing a finger at the red puppet. He jerked backwards with his other hand, and Karasu's head flew towards him. He caught it with his hand, before tossing it backwards and pulling forwards with his left ring finger. Karasu's body, which had been hiding behind him, gripped its head in midair and attached it to its body. "That mist I just sprayed your other puppets with, it's chakra-sealant. For a short while, it's not going to let you attach chakra to it. Might as well give up while you can."

"When did you get something like that?" asked Temari, looking sideways at her brother.

"Got it from Baki, it's still in its alpha stages. I prepared a canister in Karasu, but didn't expect to need to use it so early," said Kankurou. "Think of it as a field test, if you will. But so far it seems to be working we—"

"Look. It's doing something," noted Gaara.

The red Marionette simply looked down at the still bodies of its comrades. Its wooden face betrayed no emotion, although judging by its stance it certainly didn't seem worried. After a few seconds of doing nothing, it approached the body of another Marionette. Kankurou and Temari had their guards up in an instant; Gaara had his arms crossed as always. Ruin crouched, twisting the fallen puppet's neck slightly, as if looking at something.

"Interesting…" said the red Marionette. "It seems you certainly have a little bit of skill. I never thought that humans would be able to incapacitate us, no matter how low-class, with nothing more than fluid… You have truly surpassed my expectations. Yes… yes, that is what I will do. When the leader comes, I will present you to him."

"What are you talking about you crazy wack—"

"Brothers, the time for sleeping is over!" said the puppet as it raised a gloved hand over its head. The Suna siblings instantly went into defensive stances, prepared for the worst. Temari gripped her fan tight, preparing to attack at the slightest provocation, and Kankurou instantly had all of his chakra strings connected to the most important parts of Karasu. Even Gaara had lowered his stance slightly, glaring straight at the puppet in front of him.

Kankurou spared a second to look at his brother, and was slightly surprised to find a thin moist sheen on Gaara's forehead. As long as he had known him, Gaara had been perfectly at home in the desert. No matter how much he wore, or what he carried, or how long he stayed out in the desert, he had never seen him sweat before. His eyes were also strangely tense, and Kankurou could see thin veins bulging in his neck. Was there something different about this enemy…?

"Kankurou, Temari."

Gaara's opened his mouth, and the other two quickly turned to look.

"Mother… mother is scared," said Gaara. The completely disaffected look on his face had been wiped away, and now his siblings could see something that resembled emotion on his face. Whatever it was, he was not accustomed to showing it; what came out looked like a cross between a grimace, a smile, and fear. His fingers twitched, as if he was unsure how to proceed. "There's something different about them, especially that red one. Mother… mother… calm down. It's okay. It's—Argh!"

Gaara clutched his head, suddenly reacting to something in the air that Kankurou and Temari could not feel. Just as Temari was about to go to him, however, she received a firsthand demonstration of just what was throwing the implacable Gaara off so badly.

The air felt heavy, as if it was being condensed. Although they couldn't see it, it felt as if some strange gas was being introduced into the air, slowly depriving them of oxygen. Then, as if blown there by some mysterious wind, a faint red mist started rolling into the room from every opening, almost swallowing them all. Temari felt her legs shaking, as she was gripped by some unknown, primal fear, and Gaara shook his head, trying to clear it away.

"What's going on with you guys, hey!" cried Kankurou as he looked at his siblings. Temari being like this was surprising, but he had seen her with worse before. Gaara being affected by anything at all except deep emotional trauma was something he had never even dreamed of before, much less experienced. Quickly, Karasu was at his side. In the worst case, he was going to have to fend for all three of them. "Gaara—Are you getting a headache? Look, if you want to transform, it's alright—There's nobody around—"

SNAP.

The red Marionette in the center of the room had a wooden face, but Kankurou could've sworn that it was smiling as it snapped its gloved hand. Two seconds passed with nothing happening, before the puppets on the ground slowly rose upwards, their splintered faces returning back to normal. Kankurou's eyes widened. There was no way this was possible—His chakra-sealant. Was it defective?

The green-capped Marionettes stood in front of him like a wooden wall, their bodies framed by the red mist. The red Marionette stood looking at him, before raising its arms up sideways. The green ones copied the motion, and instantly the wooden crosses that had been discarded on the ground returned to their puppets immediately, and now they were pulsing faintly, as if reinforced by some unknown power.

Kankurou knew what fear felt like; it was something that all those who lived with Gaara faced before in their lives. This was a similar feeling, yet it contained another edge. With Gaara, he had always known what he had been dealing with. With these things… they were mysterious variables. But he was sure of one thing now.

"You… you're not a puppet!" stated Kankurou.

"No, you're quite right," agreed Ruin. "I'm a Mad Jester."

* * *

The mechanical monstrosities they were dealing with had proved to be unimaginably powerful, Kankurou thought with alarm as he hid behind a barren wall with alarm. Karasu was at his side, its right arm broken into pieces. Gaara and Temari weren't with him; they had been forced to split up so that the Marionettes couldn't find them. With the large pieces of equipment that they carried around with them, it would've been child's play for the wooden dolls to catch their trail.

After the Marionettes had gotten back up, they were completely different from before. The red mist that had rolled in had condensed into opaque red spheres, and had entered each Marionette except the red one, the Mad Jester. Their bodies glowed red for a second, before they turned to them. And then, before he knew what had happened, the Marionette closest had smashed his face apart with the wooden cross.

It was a good thing that he had switched places with Karasu in preparation with the Kawarimi no Jutsu. If he hadn't done it in advance, there was no way in hell he would've survived. As it was, Karasu's head was designed to break into large pieces, so it'd be easy to put it all back together later. The Marionettes had gained speed beyond their imagination, and although they had been hard-pressed to do it, with a bit of support from Gaara's sand and Temari's wind, they had managed to scatter.

Kankurou knew what the plan was now. They had to run. The puppets they had been dealing with were on a different level, a level that he could not hope to reach. Gaara had been afraid, and Gaara was never afraid. The only hope they had was to get out of here and either get some reinforcements from Suna or cancel the mission altogether. If these were normal puppets, all they'd have to do would be to find the puppeteers, but Kankurou had realized by now that normal was not a word that could be used to describe them.

Still… it wasn't like they didn't have hope. Right now they were concealed, at least he was anyway. As shinobi of Suna, they were well-versed in hiding in sandy areas. No matter how strong the foe was, if they didn't know where he was, there was no way they could fight him.

He looked back at Karasu, who was at his side. The puppet was twitching slightly, although Kankurou had barely any strings attached to it at the time. He pulled on one finger, attempting for Karasu to raise its left arm. No go. It wasn't working. Sighing, he pulled out a scroll from his pocket. With a puff of smoke, the writing on the scroll vanished, and there it was, another right arm. He quickly detached the broken one from Karasu's joints and replaced it with the other. Although the new one was devoid of weapons, it was still better than a broken one.

That red mist… What was it? As far as he could tell, he hadn't been affected, but Gaara and Temari had been. Heck, something even seemed to happen to Karasu. Now there was a faint red glow about it, and for some reason it was a lot harder to control than before. It even seemed to be moving slightly, as if it had its own will. Kankurou shook his head as he considered it, it was impossible. Something about the red mist must have affected the joints. Perhaps a magnetized field of some kind…?

Sounds of fighting.

Kankurou swung his head around as yells and screams reached his ears. These voices, unlike the Marionettes', were full of emotion, mainly anger and terror. They were… male. Kankurou's eyes widened as the voice became familiar – it was Gaara's. He hadn't recognized it before because he had never ever heard Gaara while in a mood other than angry or murderous, but here it was.

For a second, he thought of running.

For a second, he thought of a life without Gaara.

A life where his mother was alive, where his father was a better person, where Yashamaru still took care of them, where Temari and he could live lives like normal teenage shinobi.

And as soon as he had those thoughts, he picked them up, tossed them to the back of his mind into the smallest box he could imagine, and instantly closed it. Fifty locks were set and the opening was welded together, and as soon as that was done he crushed the box in an imaginary cave collapse.

He released the chakra strings that bound him to Karasu – right now it was dead weight, something unable to be controlled. A puppet that did not react instantly was more trouble than it was worth, and right now Karasu was barely responding at all. He couldn't use it. Yet, as he looked back once more and saw that familiar three-eyed face, he couldn't help but feel a little sad as he left his comrade behind.

Chakra strings whirling about his hands, he charged his feet with chakra and took off towards the location of the fighting. Although he was much less capable without a decent puppet, he was nonetheless a shinobi of Suna. He was fully able to do damage with only his strings.

It was time for him to be the older brother for once.

Behind him, Karasu's three eyes turned to focus on its master's back.

* * *

"Try as you might, there is no escape from us," said Ruin as it watched its comrades, its brothers fight against the sand-wielding young man in front of him. Although the boy was talented, and used techniques that Ruin had never seen before, he was simply no match, barely holding on as it was. "You might as well give up and die."

The battle was like something out of a nightmare for Gaara. For so long, he had not known pain. Due to his sand shield, even the small act of tripping gave him a soft cushion of sand to land on, and it became impossible for people, even himself, to inflict harm on his body. But right now, he was being hounded. The Marionettes that he was fighting, they were getting stronger and stronger, faster and faster the longer they stayed in that red mist.

He had attempted to run and hide, but he had never really learned the required skills, as nobody in the Ninja Academy had the guts to go against the will of the Kazekage's son and village monster. If he wanted out of the class, he was out. If he didn't want to learn something, they didn't force him to, and now he regretted it.

Temari was on the ground, several meters away. Without an absolute defense like his own, she had been beaten down quickly by the puppets, completely unable to mount a defense. Normally Gaara wouldn't have cared a single bit, but it meant that all four Marionettes had their attention on him. If it had been two, maybe three, he might've been able to take care of them, at least find some way to hold them off, but with all four it was pretty much impossible.

A wooden cross found its way penetrating through his sand shield again, being stopped by the extra pressure in his sand only inches away from his forehead. The puppet pulled, and the weapon came loose from his wall, ripping out segments of sand as it did so. Before the sand was able to full reform, another wooden cross found itself imbedded in it once more, this time at least several centimeters closer to its mark.

Gaara twisted his arms around in opposite directions, and the sand underneath his feet shot out like lances, penetrating the puppets that stood opposite. Or attempted to, rather. As if they had reflexes that ran like lightning, the two green-capped puppets dodged the sand lances nimbly, spinning their bodies around and tossing the wooden crosses at him once more. They spun through the air like giant shuriken, the lack of any sharp edge did not dull their deadliness.

Gaara swung his arms upwards, and two pillars of sand instantly erupted out of the desert ground. The pillars were instantly destroyed by the wooden projectiles, but they had done their work; the crosses hit his sand shield, and although they managed to penetrate the outer layer they were unable to hit their mark.

This time, without letting the crosses get back to their owners, Gaara clenched his fists. The sand closed in around the wooden crosses. Grunting, the red-headed demon child twisted his arms the other way, crossing in front of him. Instantly, the wooden crosses shot out in the direction they had been going, although the trajectory was altered just enough so that they didn't smash through him like they had been made to do before. The crosses zoomed through the air, the wind howling behind as they went; their true speed mysterious although quite clearly at a high level.

The two crosses reached the opposite puppets, although rather than knocking them down all it managed to do was provide the two with each other's weapons. They each took hold of the wooden crosses like they were their own, and returned to the battle. Gaara grunted in annoyance as he watched.

His eyes widened as he felt wooden hands reach around his ankles, and looked down.

Another Marionette had dug through the sand, and was now looking up at him from the hole that it had made in the ground. Its wooden fingers had locked around his legs, and no matter how hard he tried to move them his feet wouldn't budge. Yelling in a combination of anger and terror, Gaara drove his arm downwards, and the sand obeyed. The yellow particles flew up into the air, and came down like a tidal wave, crashing into the green-capped Marionettes and missing Gaara completely. Yet it was no use, Gaara saw as the remaining sand fell to the desert floor; the puppet seemed completely unharmed.

Just then, he heard a sound behind him. Turning around as swiftly as he could, he came face with face with the last Marionette. It had its wooden arms raised over its head, and the expression on its face, although painted like all the others, seemed to contain a sort of psychotic gleam. The instrument of death that it held in its hands, like the others, was in its grip, and seemed to be prepared to come down at any time.

Rather than panic, Gaara closed his eyes. At this point, the only way he was getting out of this situation was by calling on mother. Yet, even as he searched deep inside himself, he found that the elusive and insane voice that he had come to associate with the one who had given birth to him was nowhere to be found; rather, all he could hear was a sort of pathetic mewing.

_Mother… Where are you? Why have you left me here?_

…**It's all over. They've come! They're finally here, after all these years of isolation we've had! Kyuubi was right… Kyuubi was right! There is no safe place for us now… It's all lost… all lost… all lost…**

Time seemed to slow down as he watched the wooden cross, a giant pole with spokes on the side, come down; it was mocking him, taunting him as he was completely unable to do anything.

_What do you mean? Mother? Give me your power!_

**It wouldn't help. Nothing would help now. You don't understand, you don't understand! These demons are just the herald of something much larger, much larger! It's over already… No matter what, you're just human! You honestly think a human with demonic powers is enough to overcome a real demon, much less five? Dream on! Dream on! ****OH WAIT, YOU CAN'T!**

The voice inside of him seemed to be torn between rage, ecstasy, a sort of antagonistic sadism, and pure genuine terror. He was used to the insanity, to the madness, but to think that the voice inside of him could feel fear as well… This must've been what he had experienced back during the first encounter, when the red mist had incapacitated him.

But right now, he had no time to worry about that.

The wooden cross was coming down.

**CRASH!**

Before Gaara's eyes, another Marionette, one of the two that he had been fighting before, suddenly appeared out of nowhere and smashed into the one that had been preparing to kill him. It had swung its cross straight into the other's abdomen, and with the force of a meteor. A split-second later the injured one was flying across the sandscape, bouncing up and down like a skipping stone. It came to several yards away, as its weapon spun down beside it, planting itself into the desert floor like a gravestone.

Gaara's eyes widened in surprise.

Ruin was evidently surprised as well.

"What was that?" asked Ruin. "Are you malfunctioning?"

"Negative!" cried the puppet that had attacked the other. Its arms were wrapped around its cross rather clumsily, as though it was doing it for the first time. Turning around, it addressed the remaining two puppets. "My body is not under my control!"

With frightening speed, it clashed with the other puppet, although its speed was greatly diminished from before. Evidently, its body's sturdiness had been unaffected by whatever it was that was wresting its control away, and despite the heavy beating that it received from the other, which was completely unapologetic about the injuries it was inflicting on its comrade, it was able to keep going. In fact, it seemed completely unaware of the pain and danger, as the wooden body kept charging and ramming as though it was on a suicide mission and had no reason at all to get out of it alive.

Faint trails of blue light were tied to its joints, and instantly Gaara understood. Following the blue lines back to their source, Gaara's eyes came upon a black shadow hidden within the shade of a wall and almost completely hidden from sight by a mound of surrounding sand. Green eyes met black for a split second, and Gaara understood.

Kankurou had taken control of one of the puppets, and was fighting the other with it to give him a chance to escape. Kankurou, who had always seen him as nothing more than a monsters, something to be afraid of, his own brother, was risking his life although it was unnecessary to try and help him, fighting against monsters even greater to try and save his life.

Images of Yashamaru flashed through his mind, and for a second the steel that covered his heart cracked a bit. Yet, he had no time to ponder on the acts that his brother had done nor the emotions that rose up within him. Kankurou had given him a chance, and he was going to make it count. The Marionette underneath him still had him in its clutches, and until he broke out there was still no chance for him to escape.

Taking his chance, he threw all of his might into controlling the sand underneath him, forcing it to compress. The grainy particles converged on the puppet like a swarm of locusts, forcing themselves into joints, into places where they weren't supposed to go. The puppet, although apparently rather well-insulated, froze for a second; one second too long.

"**SABAKU RYUUSEI ****NO KOURIN! (Descent of the Desert Shooting Star!)"**

Gaara wrenched his legs out of the Marionette's grip, and threw his arms down once more. This time the surrounding sand flew up into the air in the form of a sphere, and smashed downwards like a wrecking ball, falling onto the puppet's head like a miniature sand meteor, leaving a crater as it fell. The puppet was forced underneath the earth, and although Gaara had no doubt that the creature was still more or less alright, it was at least presently incapacitated. Now with one knocked out, one buried under the desert, and the last two fighting each other, he'd be able to get out of here no prob—

"GAARA! WATCH OUT!" cried Temari's voice from the side. Gaara's eyes flickered over to her for a second. She was standing, although leaning heavily on her fan, and her face was full of fear. It didn't take long to figure out who it was for, and why.

Ruin's wooden cross, unlike the others, broke through the barrier like it was cheap tinfoil and smashed him right in the head. It was a good thing that he had his sand armour on, otherwise chances were he'd be lying on the floor, his head blown into pieces. As it was he was suffering from intense pain several meters from where he had been as he rolled around on the sand, gripping at his head, which was flaking away to reveal his true self underneath his sand armour.

This was pain.

Like needles stuck into every pore, like somebody had taken a hammer to his bones, like his head had been stuck straight into boiling lava and then pulled out again. For once, he understood exactly what kind of feelings he had been inflicting on other people for so long.

"How annoying," said Ruin. "But interesting as well. Hmm… In you, I clearly sense a demonic presence of some kind. Interesting. Very interesting. The leader will definitely be happy with you… I'll present you as a specimen to him for him to study. To dissect. How wonderful. As for my companions over there engaged in battle… hmm… A malfunction? Yes, definitely a malfunction. Those that malfunction always deny it, that's for sure."

With that conclusion reached, Ruin raised its wooden cross once more, and launched it to its side without even looking. The flying projectile shot across the sandscape and imbedded itself into the head of the rogue Marionette, sending machinery and shredded wood everywhere as the force of the blow literally broken the demon apart. The Marionette that it had been fighting finally stood down as it watched its once-comrade fall to pieces and disintegrate into little purple bursts of Mana.

Temari's eyes widened as she watched the spectacle.

"You… you would kill a comrade," said the Sun shinobi breathlessly. "Just like that?"

"What does it matter to you?" asked the Mad Jester as it cocked its wooden head to the side. With a flick of its wrist, the wooden cross flew back towards it like a boomerang, and Ruin caught its return with ease. "Although my brothers, they are nothing more than lower-class demons, without worth and function. Their deaths were also determined the moment I pumped excess Mana into them, enough for an overload. The time they have left can be counted in minutes. I simply did them a favour."

Kankurou swore as he retracted the blue threads of chakra he was so proficient in using. The Marionette that he had managed to snag, it was destroyed now. He had originally planned on using the parts from the destroyed creature to keep fighting, yet his plan had been dashed when the destroyed fragments disappeared in bursts of purple light. A sort of self-destruct mechanism? Even he wasn't sure what was going on now.

One thing he was sure of, however, was that it had been much easier than he had expected to take control of one of those sentient puppets. The fact that they were sentient was pretty much evident now; when he had gained control of it by attaching his chakra strings to the joints, he had found no traces of another user. Yet, for something that was so strong by itself, it had been far too easy for him to overcome it and bend it to his will. The moment that he had attached the chakra strings, the monster had seemed to lose all control of that appendage; in fact, he found them even easier to control than the standard Suna kugutsu, which was really saying something with Suna's decades worth of research into kugutsu-jutsu.

Yet, he had a problem now. With the Marionette that he had been controlling absolutely destroyed, he had no easy way of taking control of another one. The first one he had ensnared due to its proximity, yet the other ones were simply too far for him to control easily. Right now there was one knocked out on the ground, one buried under, one fine (the one that he had his own Marionette fight), and the last one, the most dangerous one. On their side they had Gaara in the middle of the field, Temari who was in an injured state, and he himself, who had not caught the attention of the demonic puppets just yet.

The battle was still for a second.

And then a voice boomed from out of the sky.

"**RUIN… HAVE YOU FINISHED YOUR TASK?"**

The Suna siblings looked upwards. Several meters above the battlefield a black portal formed out of nowhere, and several black steps formed as well to accompany it, creating a spiraling staircase that came down all the way to the sandy ground. Each of the Marionettes looked at each other, and nodded. Ruin himself came off guard, as though he was completely unaware of the existence of the siblings.

"Milord, yes we have. We have also come across several interesting specimens, examples of the humans in this world," said Ruin. "Do you need me back right away? Or can I spend a few more minutes here?"

"**THREE MINUTES IS ALL YOU HAVE."**

"You're too kind, milord," said Ruin, sickeningly smoothly. "I will bring it to you at once. My brothers, my comrades. Thank you for your services, but your services are, unfortunately, unnecessary as of this point on. Pleasure to have been working with you."

"Ruin, what do you—"

The red Marionette raised its gloved arm into the air once more, and snapped its fingers. The remaining Marionettes collapsed onto the ground immediately, as red energy gathered from its body and formed spheres once more. The spheres floated dangerously in the air for several seconds, before zooming back and entering Ruin's body.

It took a second for Gaara to realize that he had been hit, and it was a second too long. He slumped over, gasping for breath, as the wooden knuckle that had struck at his ribs pulled back slightly. He collapsed, gasping for breath. Had he been more experienced with pain, and understood the information that pain relayed to the brain, he would've known that several of his ribs had been cracked, if not outright broken. At this point, the pain, unfamiliar as it was, was crippling him in ways that blindness, muteness, and deafness could never do.

"I have him, milord. I'm coming back now."

With that said, Ruin began climbing up the staircase that led to the black portal swirling about in the middle of the sky. Temari watched it go, gripping her abdomen tightly, wondering what exactly she could do. The fan she was wielding was broken after attempting to block a strike from one of the puppets, and now she was incapable of long-range attacks. There was absolutely no way she was going to catch up with that puppet now, not with her injuries.

Kankurou watched as he puppet prepared to leave.

"No… no way in hell," said the hooded young man. He felt a spark of emotion, one that he had never felt before for his younger brother. Right now the bonds of blood were stronger than ever. "You're not taking him!"

Just as all hope was thought lost; Ruin felt a tug on his body. The tug instantly turned into a pull, and he was lifted off the stairs as though by an invisible hand. Gaara, who had been slung over his shoulder, fell off and landed in the soft sand, conscious but gasping with pain. Ruin found himself turning about in mid-air, hovering softly in the sky for several seconds before going into motion instantly and smashing into a nearby stone wall; a piece of the remains of what had been a house.

Ruin checked his body for damages; nothing. The wall had been too weak to damage his treated wooden body, and the speed that he had been going at had been nothing. Its body felt paralyzed, however, which was something new to a species that had been previously known to be immune to physical debilitations. As his arm moved about the sunlight, though, he caught wind of a blue trail coming from his elbow joint. Focusing some Mana into his eyes, he found the source.

Faint blue lines had been connected to his joints. Normally, they would've been nothing, but unlike standard lines these were somehow more ethereal… and contained a sort of energy similar to Mana, yet unlike it. Yet the energy base of the lines only served to strengthen them, as Ruin realized. There was something else about the lines that seemed to limit his movement, that seemed to be wresting control of his body away from him.

This feeling… yes…

It was almost like the leader's soul.

No, it was nothing like the leader's soul.

It was simply… far too weak.

With a powerful burst of Mana, summoned up from the core of his being, Ruin disconnected the blue lines from his body. Kankurou's eyes widened, but before he had a chance to detach the lines from his fingers, Ruin had already acted. The red Marionette gripped the released chakra strings with its wooden hands, and pulled as hard as it could. Kankurou felt himself jerking away from his safe position in the shade of the wall and landed right in front of Ruin, on his hands and knees. He looked up, and only the sight of Ruin's intimidating wooden face was there to greet him.

"Ergh… you bastard…!"

"Hmph. A cockroach? Fancy that," said Ruin. "What's a punk like you doing here?"

"You asshole…" said Kankurou as he glared straight into the Marionette's eyes. They were blank white, painted on. He could not see an ounce of humanity in that opaque white paint, if they were its real eyes. All he could see was a wooden wall, one that repelled emotions. There would be no reasoning with this monstrous beast. "You think I'm just going to let you run off with my little brother like that?! No way. NOT A CHANCE IN HELL!"

"You fancy yourself a puppeteer?" asked Ruin, looking downwards at the prey in front of him. The hooded figure threw out his arms, blue strings dangling from his fingers, as though attempting to take control of him again. Ruin did not give him the chance, however, instantly stepping on his arms and forcing them into the sand. The hooded figure gave out a small cry. "That's funny. I don't recall giving permission for anybody other than the leader to pull my strings. Let's see how you try to control others without control of your arms."

And with that said, Ruin stamped down. Hard.

Snap. Crack.

"ARRRGGGGHHHH!! Ahh… AHHH! URGH! AAGGGGHHH! SONNUVABITCH! ARRRRRGGGHH!"

CRACK.

Sickening cracks were heard as Kankurou howled in pain. The puppet had stamped right on top of his arms, right underneath the elbow, breaking the bone and leaving his arms hanging at strange angles. The pain was unimaginable, and Temari, watching from a ways away, turned pale at the sight of her brother in pain. Gaara looked upwards, and too felt similarly as he watched the arms of his brother twist unnaturally.

"I wonder how you did it, attempting to control me," said Ruin as he looked downwards at the pitiful youth, who was attempting to stifle the pain. "But it doesn't really matter. You're too weak to be of any interest. Looks like the demon-human will be the lucky winner."

"**WAIT. DID YOU SAY IT ATTEMPTED TO CONTROL YOU?"**

"You heard that, master? I'm going to take the demon-human back."

"**NO, NO… THIS MAY BE JUST WHAT I'VE BEEN LOOKING FOR. TAKE HIM INSTEAD OF THE DEMON-HUMAN. HE MIGHT JUST BE THE ONE."**

Ruin shrugged. "You're the boss."

Gripping Kankurou by the collar, the red Marionette began its trek back up the obsidian stairs. Temari watched in despair as the demon took her brother, probably to a place where she'd never see him again, and found herself racing in spite of her injuries, trying to get to the stairs and stop the puppet somehow. Gaara too tried to stand. This emotion was unfamiliar to him, but he could've sworn he felt it before. But right now, he simply didn't want the person who had protected him to die.

Yet both their efforts were stopped before they began, by the timely assistance of somebody else. Wires flew through the air, their tips topped with kunai. They spiraled around Ruin, wrapping him and Kankurou up. The puppeteer's eyes widened as he felt the steel cable close in around him; he knew this stuff. There was only one place that they were installed in. There was no way in hell—

Temari's eyes followed the wire to its source, to an unimaginable sight. Her eyes widened as she realized what she was looking at.

She had been wondering where Karasu had been, and here was her answer. In front of her, standing on its own two legs, was the puppet that Kankurou had been using ever since he decided to get into puppetry. The wooden spheres that represented its eyes before were now replaced with white, real-looking flesh, and all three of its eyes were pointed in Ruin and Kankurou's direction. Temari was sure that if Karasu's wooden face had been able to show emotion, it would've been displaying impossible anger.

"DON'T… DON'T YOU DARE…!" said the puppet, its simple mouth opening up and down. Yet, somehow without lips or a voice mechanism, it was able to speak. The tone was simple, a little raspy, but the emotion within it was evident. Karasu did not speak in monotone like the Marionettes. This was a puppet filled with emotion. "GIVE ME BACK MY BOSS!"

"Karasu…!" cried Kankurou as he looked outwards from within the steel cable cocoon that he along with his would-be kidnapper were trapped within. "How—!"

"How do you people do it," said Ruin, not even looking backwards at his attacker. "Every time I get a little closer to the end, you have to go and stop me like this. It's nothing, but it's really starting to… PISS… ME… OFF!"

With that said, Ruin gripped the steel cable and pulled forwards as quickly as he could, charging into the black portal. Kankurou could only watch in horror as his body went through the swirling darkness. Karasu flew through the air, propelled by the momentum of the steel cable, and entered the portal as well, moments before it closed up.

In the end, all that was left was Gaara, Temari, and the unmoving bodies of four Marionettes. It took several seconds for Temari to get to where Gaara was, shocked and injured as she was, but the moment she got near her little brother, she got to work. The sand that had been surrounding Gaara, his automatic defense, was failing; it didn't even prevent her approach. Instantly, she whipped out her first-aid kit. Although Suna did not place as much importance on medcare as much as some of the other shinobi countries, at least one member of each team was required to have some general knowledge of medicine and medical jutsu. In this case, it was Temari.

She was at work in a second, ripping off Gaara's top layer of clothing to see just how badly he was damaged. Her mind was still in slight shock over the events that had just occurred, but she knew right now that Gaara needed some help. He had never gotten hurt before in his life, and that had been a particularly bad blow.

Perhaps the most surprising thing was Gaara's voice, which was tinged with pain.

"Te…Temari?"

"Don't talk, Gaara," said Temari as she put her hands on his chest, willing her chakra together into something that resembled a healing jutsu. It wasn't much of a jutsu; it didn't work fast enough to cure in the middle of a battle, and couldn't cure wounds that were too serious nor wounds that were too light. The only advantage that it had was its ease of use and learning, something that was useful in a first-aid jutsu. "You've got some pretty bad damage here. Just let me take care of it."

"Kan—Kankurou… where is… he's been taken?"

Temari looked at Gaara's eyes. They were bloodshot, something that terrified her. Whenever they got bloodshot, danger always followed. Massacres in Suna could be predicted from those eyes—

No. Not these eyes.

Temari had to stifle a gasp as she looked downwards. These eyes… They weren't the eyes of the unrepentant monster that had terrorized Suna for all these years. These weren't the eyes of somebody who treated the lives of others like trash and merely tossed away broken toys when he was finished with them. For the first time since Yashamaru's death, Temari was seeing _Gaara_'s eyes. The eyes that had been kind once, the eyes that had lusted for love and companionship. Temari found that she could not refuse.

"Yes… yes, he has."

"Kankurou… He could've just left me," said Gaara, looking upwards. His eyes were unfocused, yet he was clearly still conscious. His arms lay to his sides, spread-eagle. The pain in his chest barely compared to the pain that lay within his heart right now. "He could've just let me get taken. I thought that was what he wanted. That's what mother told me. That everybody hated and wanted me gone."

Temari didn't know what to say. She wanted to say that the words were all falsities and lies, but she knew that it was truth more than she wanted to admit. She herself sometimes thought the same, even if the majority of the time she wanted a normal family that included Gaara.

"He… called me his little brother. He said he wasn't going to let them take me," said Gaara, his eyes shining for the first time in a long, long time. This feeling was strange, almost inappropriate. Liquid gathered up in the corner of his eyes. Soon enough, a tear leaked from the duct and slid down his face. "He saved me… and I… I couldn't… I couldn't save him…"

The tears kept coming, and Temari didn't know what to do. She had always been taught that emotions were unnecessary to a skilled shinobi, and had been taught mastery over these strange things that drove humans, yet right now she was unable and unwilling to beat them down. For the first time in her life Gaara was vulnerable, for the first time he was human rather than a monster and Kankurou was gone. The recent events, and their near brushes with death, as well as worry over Kankurou's fate finally broke through, and she joined her little brother in tears, sitting him up and taking him into her arms, hugging him as hard as she could.

For the first time in eternity the two members of the Sand siblings felt a bond closer than teammates as they shared tears under the desert sun. For the first time the Sand siblings felt their emotional walls break down and reveal them for who they really were, rather than shinobi and monster.

And for the first time, the Sand siblings were seperated.


End file.
